Interim county manager Meg Blue told the commission that under the new budget, 226 county jobs were reclassified, with many getting a pay increase. Overall, the county will increase its investment in its employees by 12% this year.
During the meeting, commissioners continued to butt heads over funding for Pender County Schools and for the county tourism department, whose budget was slashed to only $65,000 this year. Commissioner Jerry Groves said he would not vote for the budget unless the tourism department received adequate funding. Commissioner Brent Springer asked to put the vote on hold in order to meet with PCS officials.
Ultimately, they settled on allocating an additional $150,000 towards giving employees merit-based raises, and agreed to make amendments to the budget based on future discussions with PCS officials. The measure passed 3 to 1, with Groves dissenting. Commissioner Brad George was absent due to an illness in his family.
The tax rate will remain 73.75 cents per $100 of property. The budget, which totals just over $111 million, goes into effect July 1.
Read more:
- WHQR: Pender County releases roughly $111-million budget proposal, keeps tax rate level
- WHQR: Pender County interim manager talks budget proposal, upcoming revaluation
- WHQR: With clock ticking, Pender County commissioners vote down budget proposal
