NEWS
Infrastructure needs dominate Bowie budget workshop
By BARBARA GREEN
[email protected]
Bowie City Councilors learned Monday night there are limited ways to increase budget revenue to help fund badly needed infrastructure as they reviewed and debated the budget draft for 2023-24.
All the council members attended with the exception of Jason Love. It was an opportunity for councilors to ask questions about budget requests and needs. The workshop lasted two hours.
Overall budget expenses are offered at $21,805,000 for the utility and general fund. Finance Director Pamela Woods presented the draft last week noting this is about $600,000 above last year’s budget. The draft does not include new debt service or vehicle lease details for the new year, but uses the prior year’s amounts as the figures are finalized.
The budget includes a 3-5% salary increase that would be administered by the department heads to their staffs based on merit pay policy. Health insurance is expecting a 12% raise and property liability and worker’s compensation will go up 15%, and those figures are being finalized. The city also is awaiting the arrival of certified property values in mid-July to put a final projection for ad valorem taxes.
On the revenue side there will be a rate increase for sewer rates which was part of an overall rate plan connected to repayment of the Texas Water Development Board $9.7 million loan for replacing 10 miles of sewer line. For base residential the rate will go from $23.90 to $24.86 the per 1,000-gallon rate above base will go from $4.16 to $4.33.
New employees will include those who staff summer recreation as the parks department tries to revitalize that program with 10 part-time workers. Previously it was stopped due to a lack of staffing. The fire department has asked for three new workers and one part-time person.
In finance, it has been sharing a worker with water, but has asked to make that person full-time. The police department also reflects the two new school resource officers that were added mid-year. The legislature has now mandated security officers at various levels based on district size.
There were questions about funds for improvements, additional staffing and how they were going to pay for some major infrastructure projects.
Read the full story on the workshop in the mid-week Bowie News.
By BARBARA GREEN
[email protected]
Trustees of the Bowie Independent School District welcomed one new member this week following the Nov. 5 election and accepted the 2023-24 outside audit with no exceptions.
Incumbent Trustee Jacky Betts returned to place one and Angie Christmas took the place two seat. After the board officers were dissolved with the new ones taking the oath, officers were elected. Betts will continue as president, Guy Green as vice president and Kent Dosch as secretary.
Paul Fleming of Edgin, Parkman, Fleming & Fleming, PC, presented the audit telling there were no issues and the process went smoothly. He noted the biggest change was the Legislature compressing the district tax rate and additional changes in the tax law. State aid formula grants increased due to the state’s funding formula compensating for lost property tax revenue due to the law change previously mentioned.
Read the full story in the weekend Bowie News.
By BARBARA GREEN
[email protected]
Information was the watchword for the second hospital/emergency room community meeting Tuesday night, as the steering committee was announced along with additional financial considerations.
About 50 people attended the meeting. Melody Gillespie, who was named chairperson for the committee, said the goal is to gather information to get it out into the community. This group was formed after the Bowie emergency room was closed by Faith Rural Health System in early October just shy of one year of operating in Bowie.
Kylie Ward, one of the public relations volunteers, said, “This committee is not here to force things on you and there are assumptions already we are proposing a tax. We are not, we don’t have that ability, we are just a research team here to explore all the options.”
Other members of the committee include Tiffany Chandler and Damon Benton handling finance and grant research; Jennifer Tellef, secretary; Valerie Tomerson, grant research; Ann Smith, PR and Margin Latham and Gillespie, legislative research. It was pointed out there are other members of the sub-committees who are helping with research, but they also invite anyone interested to help with the process.
Read the full story in the weekend Bowie News.
Top photo – Jack County Judge Keith Umphress spoke at this week’s steering committee meeting. (Photo by Barbara Green)
The following indictments were filed with the 97th District Clerk following the November session of the Montague County Grand Jury.
There were a total of 13 indictments with one sealed awaiting the arrest of a suspect.
A grand jury indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Read the full list of indictments in your mid-week Bowie News.
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