County amends Ag Society loan

By KURT NESBITT

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- County commissioners reduced the amount owed on a one-year old loan to the Brown County Agricultural Society after finding that the group's portion of the county budget allows it to pay off part of the loan early.

The action came Tuesday at a meeting of the Brown County Board.

Brown County Administrator Chuck Enter said this year's budget gives the society a $6,000 appropriation to pay its debts. Therefore, the original promissory note the county board approved will be cancelled and a newer one for $30,000 will replace it. The county appropriated $34,500 for the society in 2004.

The county board decided to loan the society $36,000 last summer. Most of this year's appropriation -- $18,500 -- directly covers the costs of operating the Brown County Fair. Another $10,000 was included for fairgrounds maintenance.

Brown County Ag Society Treasurer Bob Reinhart said the society is "tight on cash" and has no other sources of income at its disposal until this spring. The society has expressed its concerns to Heritagefest, but assured commissioners that the Ag Society has commitments from Heritagefest at least for 2004.

In other action, commissioners approved a slightly new budget-making policy.

The county's new policy requires the board to adopt budget guidelines in May, and each department's budget requests must be submitted by June. The county administrator will be responsible for reviewing the requests in July, and draft budgets are due by the end of August.

The tax levy for the coming year must be certified by Sept. 15.

The county administration will be responsible for making budgetary adjustments that might come as the result of any legislative changes or other unforeseen events.

The final preparation for the budget will be the Truth In Taxation hearing, which must be conducted on the first Thursday in December. The new policy also allows the county board to appoint a committee of two commissioners and the county administrator to make budget-balancing recommendations as necessary if the county is facing significant cuts to state aid or grant funding.

County Administrator Chuck Enter characterized the new policy as "old policy brought up to date." He said it contains many things that the county board has already done since the last policy was passed in 1994.

Meanwhile, the board passed another contract with the University of Minnesota Extension Service, this time for a regional Extension educator specializing in health and nutrition.

The position is a part-time job based in the Mankato regional office. Extension Service officials say, it will not cost Brown County any money, just a donation of office space.

Brown County last used a health and nutrition educator as one of its referral options in the food stamp outreach program, according to county documents.