Takeaways from the budget meeting
A proposed 2016 budget was presented at Columbia Borough Council's Tuesday night budget meeting. Among the items discussed were the following: The annual police department budget of $2.8 million is approximately equal to the annual amount of property tax revenue. The borough is exploring various options, including regionalization, to contain costs. Several councillors noted that the current situation is "not sustainable" and services may need to be cut in the future if no other options are implemented. According to council, infrastructure improvements and various services have routinely been paid for largely by grants and earned income tax revenue. The borough is looking at filling several positions: full-time codes department employee, highway one level employee, borough manager. The proposed millage is 7.75, a reduction of .25 mil, as recommended by the borough auditor. (.25 mil generates $85,000 per year for the borough.) The borough was recent...
