ShawneeDispatch.com

As instructed, Johnson County Manager Mike Press has provided the County Commission with a draft 2006 budget that maintains the current 21.36-mill levy.

Press presented the $668 million budget to commissioners June 8. It is 7.4 percent larger than 2005's $610 million budget. Home appraisals increased an average of 7 percent in the county last year, so maintaining the current mill levy will mean a corresponding tax increase to most homeowners.

Johnson County Commission Chairwoman Annabeth Surbaugh said Press' draft was a starting point for the commission.

"He did what we asked," she said. "He had to make some tough decisions. Now we will go through it piece by piece and see how much it hurts and how much it serves our best interests."

In a memo to commissioners, the county manager wrote the draft was a "prudent and realistic approach that maintains existing services and capital assets."

As he prepared the budget, Press received requests from the county's 38 departments and agencies for more than $17 million in additional spending. Of those spending requests, $2.8 million were included in the draft.

The budget would add 60 full-time county positions. They include 24 public-safety positions, five for the park district, and four to maintain the district attorney's white-collar crime unit. Funding for the unit was needed to continue its operation after previous grant funding ended.

Noting the many requests left out of the draft budget, County Commissioner John Segale of Shawnee said Press passed on tough decision to commissioners.

"He kind of left it to us," Segale said. "My prediction is there will be a mill levy increase this year. I'm pretty confident in saying that."

Segale said he would like to fund some of the needs Press didn't include and build up the county's reserve as a way to head off steeper tax increases in the future.

"It all depends on how you want to go," he said. "I prefer to start paying a little bit now instead of needing a great big tax increase later."

He has proposed those living in the unincorporated area pay additional taxes to help offset the cost of Johnson County Sheriff's patrols, road maintenance and other expensive "city-type services," Segale said. It wasn't fair that those living in the county's cities pay for those services peculiar to the 5 percent of the people living on 40 percent of the county's area, he said.

In addition, Segale has proposed an excise tax be imposed on development in unincorporated areas.

The proposed budget also included a 2006 capital improvement program of $118 million. Those include $15.4 million for the County Assistance Road System Program, $3.6 million as the county's share for construction of a downtown Olathe parking garage in partnership with the city of Olathe, and $2.4 million for the Bridge, Culvert, and Road Safety Program