The Greene County Commission had a Budget Workshop Thursday evening where 20 commissioners went through a list of Departments, Agencies, and Organizations that presented their budgets to the Budget and Finance Committee.
The committee spent hours hearing presentations and a few requests. The budget was not finalized and no official number was discussed, since there may still be amendments. The workshop was held so that commissioners can give feedback on the amounts presented and give more of a guide for the Budget and Finance Committee to go by before finalizing.
Greene County Mayor Kevin Morrison said the budget is currently balanced and is the same as last year. He said the budget did include an increase that went toward equipment, overtime, and areas like contracts. There were only a few that asked for an increase in their yearly budget, others requested the same amount that was given last year. There were no raises and no tax increase for this upcoming Fiscal Year.
Morrison said it was a painful process last year in regards to making sure employees were compensated well and to make sure the pay scale was perpetually funded. Director of Finance Danny Lowery added there is about $14M worth of grants coming into the Greene County community.
By the end of the workshop, commissioners considered requests for an increase in funds to the Roby Fitzgerald Adult Senior Center. Their yearly budget from Greene County is $20,000 and they asked for a budget of $75,000 or for a van to be purchased instead of a budget increase to replace their current van.
Commissioners recommended providing an additional $10,000 to their budget. A consideration for a budget increase to the Greeneville/Greene County Public Library was also discussed. The library is a joint venture between the county and Town of Greeneville. Commissioners said an agreement between both parties should be written before moving forward on a budget increase. The library received $138,000 for their 2024 budget and asked for a budget of $180,000 for 2025.
The recommendations will be discussed at the next Budget and Finance Committee meeting before getting final approval in June.
