On the way to a budget

The Town of Luther Board of Trustees will try for a second time to hold a public hearing and Special Meeting to consider a budget for next fiscal year.

The meeting was supposed to be last week, but there was an error on the official agenda. Although it is the Town Clerk’s paid responsibility to post an agenda that meets the requirements of the law, many of the Trustees accepted responsibility for the flub noting they all had an opportunity to preview the document, and missed the error. Mayor Jenni White explained the date on the agenda reflected the date the agenda was made, not the date of the meeting. “I am very sorry for the inconvenience this imposes and can only say that I will strive to do better as we move forward,” she said on her Trustee Facebook page. 

Although it’s the first such error for the new board that took office in April, it’s not the first time this has happened.
Or even the second time. Incidentally, the new board has not received official training; that comes next week at the Oklahoma Municipal League. Clerk-Treasurer Kim Bourns, not a stranger to the Town of Luther’s government, has served since his appointment in October when the board raised the pay for the position from $60 to $200 monthly. 

Click here for the June 6 Public Meeting notice at 6:30 pm. 
Click here for the June 6 Town agenda at 7 pm.
Click here for the June 6 LPWA agenda. 

In addition, the Town had to buy another ad in a traditional printed newspaper to announce the public meeting and budget. It was re-posted in The Oklahoman on Wednesday, May 31. It’s also posted here, at no cost to the town.

The board proposes a $667,537 budget for the new budget cycle which begins July 1, 2017. The new budget gives the Town almost $55,000 more to spend than the current year. The board is counting on that extra $55,000 to come from taxes. Interestingly, the Town is counting on taking in about $15,000 less in fines (tickets) and forfeitures. Incidentally, the town’s budget for 2017-18 is nearly $157,000 less than the budget in FY 2015-16, seemingly to reign in spending to save funding for inevitable capital needs with water and other infrastructure.

The June 6 Special Meeting also will feature Trustee comments, and an opportunity for citizens to openly discuss any topic.  The Luther Register will broadcast the meeting on FB Live.

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