William V. Hughes: My vision for the Delaware County Council
The Delaware County Council is the fiscal body for Delaware County. There are seven elected members: four from districts that will be on the 2022 ballot and three at large to be elected in 2024. Each member serves a four-year term.
The major responsibility of the Council is to produce an annual budget appropriating funds for all County offices and departments. The largest part of the budget goes for public health and safety, law enforcement, infrastructure such as roads and bridges, and the justice system.
The budget process begins in July when each office holder or department head submits a budget request. The budget is advertised in August and the County Auditor's office receives a revenue forecast from the State of Indiana. In September, the Council holds a budget hearing and meets for several days to bring the proposed expenditures in line with the projected income. By law, the budget must balance. The final budget for the following calendar year is adopted in October and submitted to the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance for approval.
I believe this process can be improved. First, to avoid having to cut millions of dollars from the budget, the Council should be proactive by setting clear guidelines for the office holders and department heads to consider when making their requests. Second, the Council is too often faced with making decisions on an ad hoc basis. In years when salary adjustments are possible, the Council debates whether increases should be across-the-board, on a percentage basis, or done in some other way. As a result, there are inequities throughout the County employment structure. A comprehensive salary study is needed to better inform the Council in preparing future budgets.
Third, the Council must look beyond the annual budget cycle. Long range planning is difficult due to the fluctuations within the various revenue streams, but the Council can and should establish priorities for County services as a guide to its decision making.
Another responsibility of the Council involves the granting of tax abatements as an incentive to expanding current businesses and industries and attracting new ones. There are two lessons that can be learned from the recent controversy over the Meadow Forge solar power development in Washington Township. First, the Council should not consider a tax abatement resolution without seeing a detailed proposal for the development. It was premature to consider this project without a definite plan. Second, the Council must require broader public outreach to make sure that all interested parties are fully informed and given a voice in the process.
As John Adams wrote more than 200 years ago, A Government is instituted for the common good, for the protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness of the people and not for the profit, honor, or private interest of any one man, family, or class of men.
William V. Hughes is a candidate for the Delaware County Council, District 2, in the May 3rd Republican primary election.
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This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: William V. Hughes: My vision for the Delaware County Council
