Benton County insists on no raises for next fiscal year

VINTON — As work on the next budget continued this month, the Benton County Board of Supervisors stressed that they’d give no pay raises for the next fiscal year.

The supervisors recently agreed not to give pay increases to elected officials or other officials, but will honor the pay increases already approved in multi-year contracts with the sheriff’s employees and secondary roads employees.

Last week’s meeting included presentations from the recorder’s office, conservation and integrated roadside vegetation maintenance.

Supervisor Bruce Volz participated over the phone.

Budget presentations

Lexa Speidel gave a summary of activity for the recorder’s office. The office brought in $210,325.74 for 2025 fiscal year. So far this year it has taken in $17,581.37.

Speidel was going to give one of her deputies a raise but wanted to be respectful of the supervisors’ decision to give no raises this year. Speidel believes the deputy should get a raise in the future. She said she kept everything the same for the next fiscal year.

Shelby Williams presented the proposed budgets for IRVM and conservation. She said that for every $1 invested in county conservation, the economy received $10 in output. This is a substantial return on investment, she said.

Shelby listed projects for this year for conservation and said that camping is a bit down from the last two years, but revenue is holding because of more park usage during the day.

Supervisor Chairman Tracy Seeman asked what was planned for engineering, having budgeted $20,000 for this. She said this goes to surveys and projects such as an enclosed shelter, bridge crossing and bridge replacements.

Shelby has a total decrease of $18,000 in general and supplemental and hopes to save $50,000 for big projects, such as an enclosed shelter.

Seeman observed that according to the budget, her wages will remain the same, but everybody else’s is going up. He wanted zero increases. Williams said wages will go down since they decreased offered wages for new employees.

Supervisor Ron Tippett said, “If we allow you to give your employees a raise, it’s going to make it rough on everybody else.”

Williams said, “I completely and totally respect and understand that.”

“You need to reward employees for doing good work. I am 100% behind that, but right now it’s just going to be difficult,” said Tippett.

“If we can find room in our budget to increase the employees’ wages, then those cuts should probably have been already made to the budget,” said Volz.

“The whole deal is we said zero raises,” Seeman told Williams. Williams said it was also stated multiple times to keep the budget as it is for the bottom dollar.

Tippett said it was his opinion that they need to back and remove the raises. There are two departments that are going to get raises because of union contracts. “We have written a letter requesting them to go outside of the contract. I don’t foresee that happening.”

Seeman said he’s been saying no raises to make things fair for all county employees.

Volz said, “I would love to see everybody get a raise.”

Everybody works very hard, said Volz. They have an employment package that is wonderful. “The term I like to use is ‘consistent.’ Are we going to be consistent with every department that doesn’t have a contractual raise? And if we’re going to remain consistent then we have to say no raises.”

“I think you’re catching our drift, ain’t you?” Seeman asked.

“You guys would prefer to see no raises. I got that,” Williams replied,

In other business, Treasurer Melinda Schoettmer said her office will be closed April 15 for training. The Department of Transportation is doing hands-on fraud training, looking at birth certificates and titles, Schoettmer said.

The board rescinded the appointment of the Big Grove clerk and trustee, and appointed a new clerk and trustee, Catherine Janssen and Randy Janssen.

The board met with Engineer Myron Parizek, and approved 10 days of vacation carryover for him. They also approved hiring a new office manager and accepted bids on a motor grader. Parizek recommended a Caterpillar 150 tandem with a seven-year 7,000 hours warranty for $369,811 from Altorfer. It will be here by July 1.

Deere had a bid of $392,000 from Martin Equipment.

Seventeen applications have been received for office manager at the engineer’s office. Five people were interviewed. Parizek recommended Barbara Norton to fill the position with a salary of $47,500. Her performance will be evaluated after six months and one year with a potential $1,000 increase each time.

Steve Runyan was appointed to the land use adjustment board.

Ryan Bervin of Assured Partners met with the board regarding health, dental and vision insurance renewal for next year.

The meeting closed with a discussion of snow removal on county property when snow occurs on a weekend.