Iowa County looks for ways to cut budget

MARENGO — Iowa County Supervisors are asking department heads to cut their budgets so the county can afford raises for employees.

The county needs to find about $150,000 to cover 2.5% pay increases for non-union employees, Supervisor Abigail Maas said last week.

That’s not a huge number, said Maas, but she’s not sure where the county can find the money.

The Iowa County Board of Supervisors has been working its way through budget numbers for several weeks, looking for places to cut expenses. The State limits the amount of property tax a county can collect for the general and rural funds leaving only supplemental levies under the control of county officials.

Supplemental funds are regulated as to their use and can’t be used for salaries, though they can be used to pay for benefits such as health insurance.

Maas has, for several months, suggested that the county stop providing home health care through the Public Health department because the service isn’t used enough to justify the current staffing level and is not required by law.

During Friday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, Maas, who is on the Public Health board, said she’d been told that residents of North English would have no home health care without the county service, but she has since found agencies that would cover every corner of the county if the county drops home care services.

Maas said the county would help people find other resources for home health care to replace the county service. “This is a way to save money,” said Maas.

Supervisor Kevin Heitshusen said some people have no families to look in on them and no money to pay for private home care. He hates to see them dropped from county home care.

The Public Health office, when it’s fully staffed, employs three certified nursing assistants, two registered nurses, a director, secretary and billing clerk, said Maas.

The state requires that the county have a public health office that can administer vaccines, said Maas, but home health care is not mandated.

If the county drops home health, it could retain a Public Health director, who is also a nurse who can give vaccines, and a person to run the Public Health office, saving the county money.

The county would have a better exit strategy if it waits a year to drop the home health service, Maas admitted, but the county needs money now.

“The home health industry as a whole … is not very cost effective,” said Maas, yet the Public Health Department receives more money than the ambulance department which serves more people.

Maas said she’s not suggesting that home health isn’t great for the county, but the county isn’t required by law to provide it. Putting on her “taxpayer hat,” Maas sees the cut as “an opportunity to keep us afloat.”

“I’d like to see what the Board of Health’s feelings are,” said Supervisor Jon Degen. Dropping home health would put the county in the position of an employer laying people off.

But the county may have to become that employer, said Supervisor Chris Montross.

Nurses are in demand, said Supervisor Seth Meyer. If the county releases its nurses from home health, they’ll have opportunities elsewhere.

And the county pays its certified nursing assistants only $14 an hour, said Maas, but it can’t increase the pay without also increasing the budget deficit.

Maas said about 80-100 people use the home health service at some time during any given year. Many patients don’t use the county home health service because the county’s staff doesn’t work holidays and weekends, Maas said.

“Is this worth looking into?” asked Maas, or is it a “silly notion?”

Iowa County’s maximum levy rate for its general fund will drop from 3.5 to 3.465, because of state rules, and its rural fund levy will drop from 2.9 to 2.87, said Maas.

“We can’t raise our general any more. We can’t raise our rural anymore.” Where are you going to get money? she asked.

Maas also suggested moving the emergency management agency expenses to supplemental to free up money in the general fund.

EMA has been funded equally from the general fund and the supplemental fund. Taking all of EMAs expenses from supplemental will free up $350,000 in the general fund for wage increases.

To pay for the move, the county will have to increase the supplemental tax levy from $2.76 to $3.05, said Maas, a 10.5% increase.

The change will cover 3% pay increases for union employees in the secondary roads department and a 4% increase for the sheriff and deputies, but no raises for other employees.

The state isn’t going to pass any bills that will give the county more property tax, Maas said. And the majority of taxes dollars go to salaries and benefits.

To give the rest of the county’s employees 2.5% pay increases (excluding county supervisors who won’t get pay raises), the county will have to find another $150,000 to cover wages and Federal Insurance Contributions Act and Iowa Public Employees' Retirement System contributions, Maas said.

A health insurance increase is a raise, too, said Maas. The county will absorbing the additional cost of the insurance following hikes in the premiums. That amounts to about $3600 more for an employee on the family plan, said Maas.

Montross suggested that departments cut the amount they are saving to purchase new vehicles in the future, though that will stretch the budget when the cars are eventually purchased.

Supervisors have to trust their department heads, said Degen.

“We can’t tell them how to spend it,” said Heitshusen. “We just tell them how much they’re going to get.”

The county can cut budgets for departments strategically to make certain purchases impossible.

“No matter what we cut, it’s going to affect people and livelihoods,” said Montross.

Budget discussions will continue Friday, Jan. 24. The Board of Supervisors meets at 9 a.m. in the East Annex, 970 Court Ave. The meetings are public.

Meetings are streamed live and recorded via YouTube on the Iowa County, Iowa, Supervisors channel.