Budgets pass second readings
8-percent pay increase for Clinton empoyees
Tuesday evening’s Clinton City Council meeting saw the approval on second reading of its no-tax-increase budget for the coming fiscal year, beginning July 1.
The new $14.6 million budget is slightly larger than the current estimated budget and contains an 8-percent minimum increase in salary for city employees.
In the new budget, the property tax rate stays the same at $0.8646 per $100 of assessed property value.
Councilman Jim McBride said this was one of the biggest raises Clinton employees have had in a while and he was glad the council was able to grant them.
In another budget-related item, the council passed a resolution appropriating various amounts of money for several nonprofit organizations in the new fiscal year, including Junior Achievement, Anderson County Library Board, Anderson County Fair and the American Legion.
Upon the recommendation of McBride, the appropriation for the Anderson County Office for Aging was increased from $2,000 to $4,000.
As for the current budget, Chris Phillips, the city’s finance manager, said that with 11 months gone out of the current fiscal year, revenues were at 120-percent of the budgeted amount and expenditures were at 99.1-percent.
He said that sales tax collections are up 7-percent over the same time last year.
The council passed on first reading an ordinance that would zero out the current budget.
Ron Martin, business owner and president of the Historic Downtown Clinton Merchants Association, complained of the lack of billboards advertising the antique businesses in Clinton. He said that four years ago, thanks to billboards, Clinton was the largest antique district in the South.
“Things were working,” he said. “Then the billboards were taken down. Those signs brought tourists into Clinton.”
City Manager Roger Houck said that the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce originally maintained the billboards, with financing from the city. Then, a few years ago, the city started giving funding to another organization, Historic Downtown Clinton, for marketing.
Katherine Birkbeck, program director of Historic Downtown Clinton, said that billboards would take up the entire promotional budget.
“It’s not something we can afford,” she said. She said the promotional budget was spent for such things as post cards, fliers and posters. After spending some time in discussion of billboards, the council took no action.
The resolution on nonprofits appropriated $35,000 from the new budget for Historic Downtown Clinton to be used for general purposes.
On a positive note, Birkbeck said her organization was working on 17 new historical markers and a new website for the city’s walking tour, and has funding for new banners that would have historical photos.
Mayor Scott Burton urged people to contact the city if they have complaints about speeders or code violations.
The council learned from Kelly Johnson, director of schools, that with retakes and appeals of the TCAT, 83-88-percent of third-graders were able to advance to the fourth grade.
In response to a question about the city swimming pool, Houck replied that a contract for pool improvements would be let within two months.
He said the city would soon be going out for bids for improvements to the fire and police department buildings, and would soon be planning for street improvements.
Councilman McBride, in his report on the Clinton Utility Board, noted that the new budget for CUB contained 6-percent salary increases for employees as well increases in utility rates.
He said electric bills would increase by an average of $3.78, and water and sewer bills would increase by an average of $7.78.
The council, sitting as the beer board, granted a special beer permit to Samuel Taylor Martin for July 28.
