Township budget talks continue, special meeting called

By RICHARD JENKINS

[email protected]

Ironwood Township — As the minutes ticked past the scheduled 5:30 p.m. start time for the regular board meeting, it became clear the Ironwood Township Board of Trustees was going to need more than a one-hour special meeting Monday to decide what next year’s budget should look like.

While the board called another special meeting — scheduled for 9 a.m., Thursday Dec. 27 — to complete the budget process, progress did seem to have been made during the discussion prior to Monday’s regular meeting.

While no final decisions were made, the board expressed a general consensus — or at least a majority of members supported — several changes to the proposed 2019 budget.

These included holding off on any salary increases for elected township officials.

“I think we need to hold off on any salaries until the compensation committee has a chance to meet,” said trustee Marlene Saari-Mieloszyk. The committee — which is the process of forming — currently consists of Saari-Mieloszyk, trustee Kevin Lyons and resident Sharon Hallberg.

The majority of the board also expressed support for reducing the amount budgeted toward library costs back to last year’s $100 until the township sees what the library bids actually are.

Prior to the board’s discussion, several residents expressed concern about the township’s budget priorities.

Much like last month’s public hearing, residents expressed concern about proposed raises for several township employees in the budget.

The proposed budget calls for each of the three elected officials working in the township office to each make $38,563 next year, a $1,123 increase from what was budgeted in 2018.

The clerk and treasurer would each split an additional $6,375 from the water fund and $6,375 from the sewer fund for work done involving those accounts. The board’s decision to delay action on raises until the compensation committee meets, assuming that decision is formalized in a motion, would keep the salaries at last year’s levels.

Residents also expressed concern about the township’s tax debt to other local government entities.

The township owes a total of $820,409 in tax money, with Gogebic County owed $335,181, the Ironwood Area Schools $389,805 and the GOISD $95,423.

The money is taxes former treasurer Jyl Olson-DeRosso collected but never passed on to the appropriate authorities.

These figures are included in the $1,398,654 Olson-DeRosso was ordered to pay in restitution as part of her sentence on forgery and embezzlement charges in May.

Township officials say they continue to wait for payment from the township’s insurance and bonding companies to cover the amounts owed.

Some residents and board members felt the township should proactively pay the other local entities rather than wait for the companies to settle the debt.