Centerville's Budget Breakdown | News

The city of Centerville passed their budget for next year, and there are a few changes but the biggest may not come until November.

That's when Centerville residents may be asked to vote on whether to keep property tax exemptions for seniors over seventy. 

City Administrator, Patrick Eidson says council is looking for a relief from those exemptions. Right now, it is not in next year's budget.

He added that the city will not raise property taxes even though there are new additions to the budget.

For example, Eidson says Centerville is adding two new labor positions in the water and sewer departments to help keep up with the city's growth.

Current employees may notice their paychecks increasing too.

"We did not freeze any positions or cut any positions this year and employees did see a three percent cost of living adjustment."

They have also added a Captain's position in the fire department using money from the General Fund, which is funded by taxpayers. 

Chief Jason Jones says the position will give the department a better rank structure.

"If we get multiple calls, where we need incident command, he can be on incident command on one scene while I'm incident command on another scene, it's just going to help the department a lot," says Chief Jones.

Centerville also has plans to buy a new animal control vehicle, which is something Eidson says they've put off for several years.

"We have pretty much reached the end point with the vehicle that we currently have, we've spent a lot of money over the last few years on maintenance just to keep the truck running," explains Eidson.

Council also budgeted a ten-percent increase for employee benefits. Eidson says it's a way to reward the city's employees for their loyalty.