Fiscal Court set to meet Tuesday on budget vote

Henry Culvyhouse, The Daily Independent, Ashland, Ky.
·2 min read

Jun. 25—CATLETTSBURG — The Boyd County Fiscal Court is set to take a final vote on the 2022-23 budget on Tuesday, amounting to $32.6 million.

The budget, about $2.4 million less than last year's budget, is still much higher than in years past, thanks to $4.5 million in COVID funds and the $11 million taken out last year to fund projects at Camp Landing, work at the roads department and the new animal shelter.

The main drop in the budget was in the general fund — in last year's budget, it came in at a whopping $21.3 million, while this year it came out to $18.65 million.

Chaney said the drop was due to proceeds from the bond money being spent last year, mostly in the purchase of the former Sears Building from Camp Landing to make way for a convention center.

That convention center concept has recently changed to lease for a gambling parlor to be attached to a proposed horse track.

While Chaney agreed with Commissioner Larry Brown's call for a work session ahead of the budget vote, he said the court wasn't able to get together due to scheduling conflicts.

"It's that time of the year with vacations, we couldn't get everyone together," Chaney said.

Brown said a work session is important to have, because it sets the plan for how money will spent over the next year.

"A work session gives us the opportunity to look over the budget line by line to see how we're meeting the county's needs and how we can best serve our people," Brown said. "Work sessions let us hear from the people and see what needs to be met, whether it's a road needing paved or a bridge that needs fixed."

Commissioner Keith Watts said he didn't think a work session was really necessary, because this year's budget is very similar to the one passed last year.

"I feel pretty good about our budget, I think it allows us to continue to do what we started last year," Watts said. "I compared the two budgets and didn't see any problems with it."

Commissioner Randy Stapleton could not be reached for comment.

The meeting will be Tuesday, June 28, at noon at the fiscal court chambers on the second floor. As with all meetings, it will also be simulcast on the court's Facebook page.

(606) 326-2653 — henry@dailyindependent.com