Washington County asks departments to cut budgets by 5%

WASHINGTON - County supervisors unanimously passed a budget directive Tuesday morning instructing every agency to total up their costs for next year’s salaries and this year’s operations, and then slash the sum by 5% for upcoming annual budget proposals.

Decision-makers blamed the belt-tightening measure on House File 718, a state law passed in May that limits county general fund property tax levies to a maximum of $3.50 per $1,000 of assessed value, starting in July of 2028. Washington County’s levy is currently $4.50.

“The budget’s going to be tough this year, we’re going to have to try so save money every way we can,” Supervisor Jack Seward Jr. said, later adding that “Somehow or another, we’ve got to try reducing our tax asking.”

Advocates for the bill, including State Senator Dawn Driscoll, have praised it as “the most comprehensive property tax reform ever,” which “...pushes local governments to follow the Republican legislature’s example to budget responsibly, invest in important priorities, and provide tax relief to the taxpayer.

Still, the mandated tax cut is proving troublesome for even conservative-controlled local governments like Washington County, where all five supervisors are Republican.

The board of supervisors, at the same meeting, voted to approve a 4% pay raise for non-elected county employees, as well as a 3.5% increase for elected officials, including themselves, to keep up with the cost of living. The county’s compensation board had recommended a 4% bump for the coming fiscal year.

Agencies could ostensibly maintain their salaries from last year to help meet the board’s budget directive, but would likely sacrifice morale - and potentially even staff - in doing so.

“It’s important to keep people around,” Supervisor Stan Stoops said. “Everybody has heard this line before; A loaf of bread costs the lowest-paid employee in this county the same as it costs the highest-paid employee in the county. To keep that spread from increasing, I think it would be fair to leave it at 4%.”

Besides salaries, myriad other county costs, like the price of a police car or ambulance chassis, are up drastically since budget season five years ago. So is the going rate for gas, printer ink, most construction materials and health insurance benefits.

While property assessment values are expected to rise next fiscal year - a change that could offset local tax cuts - supervisors said they couldn’t bank on that as a long-term trend.

“If the housing market goes flat, or if the housing market starts to drop, which some people say is happening, then we can’t count on that evaluation always going up to give us more money,” Supervisor Richard Young said. “I don’t think they realize that in Des Moines.”

Some departments will likely prove unable to meet the latest directive, however. According Washington County Budget Director Cyndie Sinn, at least a few simply don’t have operations to cut.

“There’s a different dynamic for different departments,” she said at the meeting. “Some departments are totally administrative, and the majority of their whole department’s budget is salary and benefits.”

County leaders said they recognized that possibility, but called the 5% reduction goal a starting point, asking agencies that can’t meet the request to explain why in future budget discussions.

While decision-makers said the first services on the chopping block would be those not mandated by the state or federal government, Supervisor Marcus Fedler said he hoped to avoid “authoritarian,” top-down decisions about how to trim county spending.

"Department heads know their department, and we should give them the tools in order for them to complete their task as best they can,“ he said. ”Maybe some departments have more and some departments have less, or maybe it’s all flat-line and we’ll have to figure it out another way and be authoritarian about it. I don’t want it to be that way, I’d rather we come to the table and have a conversation.“

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com