Staff writer
In a short meeting with members Delores Dalke and Marlene Fast absent, Hillsboro City Council heard positive news about city growth gleaned from 2011 sales tax numbers Tuesday.
“Since sales tax is the number one revenue source we get, and it is more volatile than property tax, it is a good thing to see the growth we had in 2011,” City Administrator Larry Paine said. “We showed a 4 percent growth over 2010. It was a good chunk.”
Paine said growth by sales tax revenue was good because it indicated Hillsboro’s local economy was doing well, despite widespread struggles elsewhere.
Presiding president of the council Byron McCarty said good sales tax numbers would help get the county jail in Marion paid off quicker, as well as help fund other projects.
Paine shared a memo outlining recent staff salary adjustments with the council.
“I have taken a spreadsheet for calculating budgets and did a mail merge with the name and basic wage we pay, into a document showing what the fringe benefits are worth,” he said.
Fringe benefits for city employees include Kansas Public Employees Retirement System payments, health care, and other items.
In other business:
- Paine presented an updated 2011 Capital Summary Project List to show council members dollar amount details of line items that increased to cover over-expenditures.
- Council members approved Resolution 2012-01 concerning a Kansas Power Pool Board purchase agreement with Kelson Energy to acquire seven percent ownership of the Dogwood Power Plant.
- No board appointments were made.