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Washington County Commissioners approved a 2023 budget Thursday that includes a 4% employee pay increase, with the goals of workforce retention and helping non-contract county workers deal with ongoing inflation concerns.
Last year's county wage increase was 3%.
There also will be a boost in the total funds allocated to roads, bridges and townships through the permissive sales tax revenue. The 2023 allocation will be 30%, up from 26% in previous years. That translates to $2,700,000 in 2023, compared to $2,598,798 in 2022 and $2,238,710 in 2021.
There is a $100,000 Capital Projects appropriation to pay for building and infrastructure updates. Among those plans is construction/renovation at 311 Third St. in Marietta. The building houses the Ohio Means Jobs Center, a part of the county's Job and Family Services system.
The 2023 total budget is roughly $21 million.
The county has received unprecedented federal government funding through the CARES Act and American Rescue Plan Act over the past two years to help offset the economic effects of a global pandemic, Commission President Charlie Schilling said, and Washington County begins 2023 on firm footing. However, additional federal funding is not anticipated, and costs continue to rise. The wage increase and the sales tax revenue allocation are two of the budget factors where commissioners have taken those factors into consideration.
Schilling also detailed the county's funding of the Devola Sewer Project, which broke ground in 2022. When total project costs are finalized, they are expected to top $15 million. The Washington County Commissioners secured $10 million in state funds, $3 million from Congressional member-directed funding, $1 million from the Army Corps of Engineers, $750,000 from an H2Ohio Wastewater Grant, and $368,000 from the Appalachian Regional Commission.
A separate but related Devola Electric Project was completed in 2022. The work installed/updated the necessary electric component to each household in the Devola Sewer Project. The project was funded entirely by American Rescue Plan Act funds received by the county.