The Daviess County Council has managed the county’s finances better than most other Hoosier counties. That was the word from Jason Semler of financial consultants Umbaugh and Associates. Semler presented a review of the county’s handling of funds at Wednesday’s meeting. He told the Council that the County was in very good shape financially and could afford to finance a large part of the cost of the Courthouse Annex Project without impacting the County’s financial stability. As the overseer of the County’s finances, the Council will hold a special work session on January 4, to determine how much of the Annex project’s projected $8 million cost will be bonded and how much can be paid from County funds on hand. Bids for construction of the project will be opened in January.
In other action, the County Council approved several items at their Wednesday meeting. They took a step in helping the County’s Economic Development efforts by approving a resolution to grant tax abatement on the expansion of Maysville Enterprises which will add jobs to the County’s workforce.
Most of the other business consisted of approving end of the year fund transfers, however, the Council Ok’d the final step of making an early pay off of the bonds that financed the security center. They approved spending $3 million which will reduce the county’s debt load.
The Council also approved salary changes at West Boggs Park, and added voter registration board members and the voter registration officer to the county payroll. Pay for voter registration had formerly been done through the claims process, but the State Board of Accounts is now mandating the money be figured as salary.