On May 2, the Budget Committee for the Clackamas County Soil and Water Conservation District approved a modified budget proposal for the coming fiscal year (July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2013). A public hearing on the budget will be held at 12:30 pm on May 15, immediately preceding the regular meeting of the District’s Board of Directors.
Please leave comments and questions at the bottom of this page. (Note that comments are moderated. The District will keep commenting open until May 15, 2012.) You may contact District Manager Tom Salzer about the approved budget, and we invite you to attend the budget hearing on May 15.
Background
District is a taxing entity
Oregon Revised Statute chapter 294 requires public taxing entities to prepare a budget consistent with Oregon Local Budget Law.
The Clackamas County Soil and Water Conservation District is a special district of the State of Oregon and a local unit of government, formed under the authority of Oregon Revised Statute chapter 568, and with the powers and duties described in that law. In 2006, Clackamas County voters granted a permanent property tax rate limit to the District, making the District a public taxing entity that must comply with Oregon Local Budget Law.
Budget Committee
The District must establish a Budget Committee and must hold at least one public meeting to review and approve the upcoming year’s budget. The Budget Committee consists of the District’s governing body and an equal number of local citizens.
This year, the Budget Committee met on April 4 and on May 2.
The Budget Committee meets to review, discuss, make additions or deletions, and approve the proposed budget presented by the local government’s budget officer. Upon completion of its deliberations, the Committee approves the budget and sets the tax rate or amount needed to balance the budget.
Approved budget
Budget structure for fiscal year 2012-2013
Fund structure for 2012-2013
The proposed budget reflects a simplified structure that revolves around three funds: General Fund, Conservation Fund, and Building Reserve Fund.
The General Fund covers the operation of the District and the provision of conservation services to others.
The Conservation Fund is a special revenue fund focused on the financial assistance we provide to others. This new fund combines the Conservation Implementation Fund with other financial programs focused on installing conservation practices and supporting partner programs.
The Building Reserve Fund is a restricted account where we are saving for a facility that will allow the District to provide better service to our customers.
Notable changes
First, the budget structure as approved by the Budget Committee is simplified compared to previous years. The District plans to eliminate individual programs, grouping the delivery of technical assistance and conservation planning into the new Conservation Services department. Administrative and management functions are grouped into the new District Operations department.
Second, the Budget Committee approved combining several programs designed to provide financial assistance to private landowners for installing conservation practices and to partners in support of their conservation work into the new Conservation Fund. This fund is a special revenue fund to receive money that is restricted in how it can be used, and we can better capture and manage those restricted funds in a special revenue fund. The amount of money approved for the Conservation Fund is significantly larger than what has been available before, reflecting the District’s commitment to implement more conservation actions.
Third, the Budget Committee agreed that the Building Reserve Fund was necessary, approving the renewal of this fund for another five years.
Fourth, in support of the approved budget, the Budget Committee set the tax rate at 4.9 cents per $1,000 of assessed value. This is an increase from the fiscal year 2011-2012 tax rate of 4.5 cents.
Documents
The budget message and addenda are available below, as is the budget approved by the Budget Committee.
Next steps
Next comes the budget hearing on May 15. After that hearing, the Board of Directors will adopt, or modify and adopt, the final budget for fiscal year 2012-2013.
CCSWCD-Budget-FY-2012-2013-ADOPTED_SUPPLEMENTAL-16October2012-page9.pdf
