By Jason Stuart
Ranger-Review Staff Writer
The Glendive City Council unanimously approved the preliminary city budget for Fiscal Year 2016-17 on Tuesday night.
The preliminary budget for this fiscal year is set at $19,363,372. That represents an increase of about $300,000 over last year’s budget of $19,095,057. Of the total, $9,086,257 is budgeted for non-salary expenses. The total includes $3,468,137 of salary expenses.
The amount of money the city will actually be collecting in property taxes is up slightly from last year.
The preliminary budget calls for a total mill levy of 190.46 non-exempt mills (which does not include permissive mill levies for health insurance). Last year that number was 182.94 mills. The city is authorized to levy up to 222.01 non-exempt mills this year, but per its custom is currently leaving some of its mills on the table. The total number of mills the budget proposes to levy, including the permissive medical levies, is 195.42.
At the current taxable values, the mills presently in the city budget will raise $1,492,628 in tax revenue for the city. Last year’s city mill levies collected $1,390,929 in property taxes.
As noted, the city typically leaves some 30 or so mills it is authorized to collect out of the budget, and there is usually little change between the preliminary budget and the final budget.
Last year, however, the council voted in an additional 7 mills the night they approved the final budget — adding about $50,000 to it — in order to help fund the purchase of a new fire truck for the Glendive Fire Department.
While there was little discussion at Tuesday night’s council meeting prior to passage of the preliminary budget, Mayor Jerry Jimison did note that city Director of Operations Kevin Dorwart has requested that any suggested changes to the budget be delivered to him well before the council votes on its final passage.
“Prior to, you know, earlier than 10 minutes before we meet,” quipped Councilman Rhett Coon, who made the motion to add the last-minute budget amendment to last year’s budget.
The council will hold a public hearing on the proposed budget at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 6 prior to the regular council meeting. The council will then vote on final passage of the budget following that hearing.
In other city business Tuesday night, the council unanimously voted to approve a new two-year contract with the Glendive Fire Department’s union. The contract calls for a 3 percent salary increase for the city’s four full-time firefighters this year and another 3.5 percent salary increase next year. The contract also stipulates that the city will increase its contribution to the firefighters’ health insurance premiums by $25 per month this year and by another $30 per month next year. The other major change in the contract is an increase in the probationary period for a newly hired firefighter, which has been increased from six months to one year.
Building Active Glendive member Peggy Iba also approached the council to clarify remarks she had made at the Aug. 9 meeting of the city Streets Committee.
Iba noted that she had meant to convey to the committee that she was in favor of the Montana Department of Transportation’s proposal to reconfigure Merrill Avenue into a three-lane road. She said she had intended to say that she felt the three-lane configuration would increase safety by providing more space between parked cars and traffic and creating wider lanes for traffic to travel down.
Reach Jason Stuart at rrreporter@rangerreview.com.