Jackson County commissioners approve $218 million budget

By Maggie McGehee

Ashland Daily Tidings

The Jackson County Board of Commissioners has approved a nearly $218 million county budget for the coming fiscal cycle.

Commissioners Ric Holt and Sue Kupillas approved the budget Wednesday. Commissioner Jack Walker was not present.

The 2001-2002 budget of $217,769,656 is the first in several years where the county didn't have to consider cuts. The amount is about $12 million more than last year's $206 million budget, officials said.

The increase was the result of the federal Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (RSCSDA) that was passed Oct. 30. It gives the county an additional $6.2 million for the coming year. The RSCSDA provides counties and schools in rural parts of the United States with revenue in lieu of declining timber receipts.

The federal revenue will help the county through the 2006-2007 fiscal year, and county officials hope to use the added funds to rebuild county reserves.

A group of citizens Wednesday petitioned commissioners to create a better program to inform citizens of planning issues, according to Kupillas. Though commissioners took no action on the matter, they said they would investigate the matter.

"There has been almost an annual push to get planning information out to the public in a far more comprehensive way," Kupillas said. "It's quite a costly endeavor. Right now we just meet the legal requirements and it costs us thousands of dollars."