The Freestone county property tax rate may increase 4.5 cents this year to fund a budget that has been trimmed about $1 million.

County commissioners met with other elected officials Monday to run budget numbers.

Commissioners will go over the budget again next week and expect to conduct a public hearing on the budget and tax rate about the middle of the month.

“We’ve already cut a lot,” County Judge Linda Grant says. “We are very close to balancing.”

So far, commissioners have trimmed the budget

Congressman to $13.9 million, more than a $1 million less than the 2009-10 document.

Reason for the austerity stance is that property values dropped 20 percent since 2009, which could mean less tax money flowing into coffers.

Freestone county has property and minerals on the tax rolls for $4.35 billion, compared to $5.37 billion in 2009. The drop is attributed to a reduction in mineral values of almost $1 billion.

Commissioners are looking at raising property taxes, but not enough to make up all the lost revenue.

Judge Grant reports that the court is considering a raise to 25 cents per $100 assessed valuation, up from 20.5 cents.

The raise is less than the effective tax rate of 25.8 cents—-the effective rate is the levy required to generate the same revenue as was received the year before.

The rollback tax rate is 28.17 cents per $100 assessed valuation this year.

In budget talks this week, commissioners are considering a three percent pay raise for employees and elected officials, except for sheriff’s office employees whose salaries were substantially raised a couple of years ago.

Freestone county gave no raises in 2009.

Prompting consideration of raises is a $55 per month increase in hospitalization insurance premiums to be assessed all employees and elected officials.

The county budget is divided into two main sections, the general fund which includes most departments, and the road and bridge fund.

General fund expenses are penciled in at $8.78 million, down from $9.67 million last year.

The 2010-11 figures do not yet include salaries for elected officials and department heads.

Road and bridge expenses are proposed at $5.1 million, down from $5.6 million. The road and bridge expenses include money carried over from the current year. Each department receives $1.17 million, plus carryover.

Judge Grant reports that the 2009-10 budget showed a $1 million deficit, but year-to-date expenses indicate that the budget may wind up the year balanced.

In addition to revenues from taxes and fees, Freestone county will carry a reserve fund of about $6 million into the next fiscal year.

The county fiscal year runs from Oct. 1 through Sept. 30.

Largest department expense is $1.9 million for the sheriff’s office, plus $655,000 for care and feeding of prisoners and $765,274 to operate the jail. All total, the sheriff oversees a budget of $3.3 million.

Second largest department budget is $514,188 for the county tax office which bills and collects property taxes.

Other department expenses are: county judge, $186,200; auditor, $139,265; county court, $17,700; county clerk, $362,512; county attorney, $290,710; justice court, $2,000; district court, $149,243;

Probation, $4,500; district clerk, $257,550; indigent defense, $136,000; four justice of the peace courts, $534,468;; four constables, $270,574; 9-1-

office, $44,294; extension service, $118,845; elections, $42,600;

Capital outlay, $210,000; health and welfare, $164,700; miscellaneous county services, $169,329; courthouse, $255,893; Veteran’s Service Office, $12,962; non-departmental, $353,500; central appraisal district, $135,000; ambulance service, $160,000; fire prevention, $255,800; and senior services, $105,000.

Judge Grant points out that commissioners have proposed county contributions to ambulance services, fire departments, museums and historical associations, and libraries.