Bob Lechner will continue to serve as President of the Knox County Council in 2016. Lechner was re-elected to the post during the council;s first meeting Tuesday night. Nicole Like was elected Vice-President.
In other business, Knox County Sheriff Mike Morris asked the Council to transfer funds within his budget so that he could hire two more jailers. That brings the total number of jailers to 29. Morris says the added staff will enable them to operate each shift in a safe manner instead of having only one person on duty at times.
Morris also requested funding for an electronic firearms training program. The Sheriff is partnering with Vincennes University to purchase the virtual reality software. VU would pay 20-thousand dollars of the upfront costs while the Sheriff’s Deparment would provide a little over six thousand dollars. Morris says the training program is certified by the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy and would save his department around 43-thousand dollars in expenses to certify his staff.
Council agreed to appropriate the money at their Februrary meeting.
The Knox County Council appropriated money to stem a cash flow problem in the county’s operating budget. The auditor’s office made the request after they had received the county’s December Tax draw from the state. Spokeswoman Sheila Hobbs says they received 3-point-6 million dollars, but that was less than what they originally anticipated. Hobbs believes the shortfall is due to the property tax caps implemented by the state several years ago.
Council appropriated 1-point-5 million dollars from the County Option Income Tax fund to cover salaries, supplies and other expenses instead of having to borrow from the general fund.
It’s anticipated the county’s June tax draw will be around 5-million dollars. Council President Bob Lechner suggested that the county needs a comprehenisve financial report that includes tax revenue projections. That way, Lechner says they can more accurately anticipate future financial needs.