By BOB SHRALUKA
WZBD.com
The year isn’t half over but talks already are underway among Decatur officials on a 2025 budget.
And what looks to be a big sticking point is an expected large hike in insurance rates.
Mayor Dan Rickord informed city council at its meeting Tuesday night that an insurance increase “is coming.” Later during a discussion, he remarked: “Insurance is going to be a bigger hit than we’ve seen.”
The two biggest items in a city budget are employee pay and insurance costs.
Clerk-treasurer Kevin Hackman sparked the discussion by asking council for a tentative number for city employee raises.
“I would like to get your thoughts so I can begin plugging in some (budget) numbers,” Hackman said.
City workers got a 3% pay hike for this year and were given a dollar amount (rather than a percentage) the previous year.
Rickord noted that the city has absorbed insurance increases for years, rather than pass them on to city workers.
“Probably every meeting between now and October there will be some discussions on the budget,” Hackman added.
Department heads are already getting together their numbers.
Although no decision was made, Councilman Matt Dyer reminded his colleagues that talks have been going on for a year or more about the need for a new building, mainly to house vehicles and store various items.
The city sold its building on Grant St. to Adams County will over a year ago. With permission from the county, however, a number of city items remain in the building.
As the discussion wound down, Councilman Tyler Fullenkamp called for doing budget planning with a 3% employee raise in mind. That number can be altered later.