Library expects approved budget rates to decrease

Tribune Staff Reports

Jackson County Public Library Board of Trustees recently adopted the 2013 budget at its regular meeting.

The approved operating fund budget is $2,189,140 with a preliminary tax rate of 9.26 cents per $100 assessed valuation. This year’s budget is $2,078,641.

Library administrator Mary Reed has said she expects the tax rate to be reduced below the current rate of 8.28 cents once new assessed valuations are calculated by the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance.

Reed also expects the rate to go down because the library is not continuing its debt service rate of 0.0061 percent.

The library will retire the bond fund for the 2005 Seymour building project in December and does not have plans to appropriate the library improvement reserve or rainy day funds in 2013.

The board also approved a $55,000 reduction to the 2012 operating budget to help with cash flow.

Trustees also agreed to move their regular board meetings to the third Monday of each month effective in January 2013. February’s meeting will be the third Tuesday because of Presidents’ Day.

Board president Sally Crouch appointed Bob Mahan, Dan Thomas and Morris Tippin to the nominating committee. The committee will submit a slate of officers at the November meeting for a December election.

The board received a quarterly volunteer report with 43 volunteers, 10 Friends board members and seven AmeriCorps workers serving 3,523.75 hours so far in 2012.

Trustees reviewed a quarterly collection agency report that showed Unique Management has processed 6,822 accounts since 1999 to recover $185,653.61 and materials worth $120,399. Cost to the library for those accounts was $66,080.91.

The board’s next meeting is Nov. 20 at the Medora Library.