COAL TOWNSHIP - The board of commissioners is looking to trim the fat from the township's preliminary budget, a move discussed during Tuesday night's meeting. The board and manager Rob Slaby met Tuesday to look over revenue and expenses to close a gap of $161,591.
Craig Fetterman, president of the board, urged fellow commissioners to meet with their department heads to analyze line items and to prioritize spending. He said the township is fiscally in "good shape" and that a $280,000 capital reserve from the sale of sewer lines several years ago could be used to balance the budget.
The 2013 budget proposal totals $2,767,817, down $57,301 from 2012's operating budget. Anticipated revenue totals $2,606,226, down $218,892. Contributing to the drop in revenue are $15,000 from dumping licensees and $57,250 from "COPS in School," a program which placed a uniformed officer in the Shamokin Area Middle/High School.
Shamokin Area School Board members voted in January to end the COPS in School program. The district had been paying 70 percent of a designated officer's salary and benefits to patrol the hallways of district buildings. Fetterman said the township hired a new officer before the program ended and is now on the hook for paying the wage and benefits of an extra officer.
Board members took issue with the Northumberland County Board of Commissioners which voted Tuesday to halt the practice of allowing state constables to transport inmates to and from arraignments and hearings, beginning next year. Commissioners are worried the change in policy could alter the police department budget.
"It places a burden and expense on municipalities," Fetterman said. "We will have to look at the police department budget."
Commissioner Gene Welsh said the street department has decreased its budget by $105,850, which amounts to eight percent of the budget. Monies set aside include $50,000 for snow and ice control, $30,000 for vehicle maintenance and $25,000 for street maintenance. Welsh said a repeat of last season's snow-free winter could be a saving grace.
Formal adoption of the budget could occur during the commissioners' monthly meeting on Dec. 13.