Various Riley County department heads presented their upcoming fiscal year budgets during Monday’s county commission meeting. This was the first day for requests to be made, but they are expected to continue during the upcoming few weeks.
Some of the department heads who presented included Register of Deeds, Debbie Regester; County Appraiser, Greg McHenry; and Noxious Weed Director, Dennis Peterson.
The county will continue to hear from department heads, but they will also receive requests from various outside entities and organizations that they help fund.
Budget and Finance Officer, Johnette Shepek shared a few different funding requests as well, many of which involve personnel and contractual services.
Commission Chair, Ron Wells made a statement during discussions regarding out-of-state travel funds. He said he feels it is not beneficial to send all three commissioners to out-of-state conferences, as it is just as effective to send one. He also stated he felt it was an area where money could be saved.
Commissioner, Robert Boyd stated he did not completely agree with this statement, as he felt it is often beneficial to send the entire commission to conferences. However, Boyd said he feels the biggest addition within this portion of the budget is the costs for the lobbyist.
Once the budget requests are all made, budget work sessions will begin. Both the requests and the work sessions are open to the public.
