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Page A-2 Shelton-Mason County Journal Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020
Mason County passes budget for 2021
By Kirk Boxleitner
kbox/eitner@masoncounty.com
Mason County commissioners
unanimously approved a proposed
2021 budget Dec. 7 following a com-
ment period that saw no comments
submitted by either county depart-
ment members or the public during a
Zoom meeting.
County Budget Manager Jen-
nifer Beierle said the budget is
$125,853,487, with a general fund of
$53,464,511, broken down as follows:
I A beginning fund balance of $14
million.
I Revenues, excluding the begin-
ning fund balance, of $39,464,511.
I Salaries and benefits of
$28,699,727.
I Operating
$11,983,896.
I An ending fund balance of
$12,780,888.
The budget’s total other funds are
$72,388,976, broken down as follows:
expenditures of
A construction worker walks out of the old Olsen Furniture building in
Shelton, Wednesday morning. The build-
ing was purchased by Mason County in 2019 for additional courtroom space.
Journal photo by Lloyd Mullen
I Salaries and benefits of
$12,579,770.
I Total operating expenditures of
$59,809,206. ‘
Beierle acknowledged “everyone
who worked on this budget during this
difficult COVID year,” while singling
out County Financial Analyst Kelly
Bergh and the auditor’s financial ser-
vices team.
Commissioner Randy Neatherlin
echoed and expanded Beierle’s thanks
to county staff “across the board,” in-
cluding “every single department and
elected official,” in consideration of the
“incredible year” that 2020 has been
for Mason County.
“This could have been a very, very
bad year, and it will be for other coun—
ties, unlike us,” Neatherlin said. “We
were prepared, and we are sitting in
a very good position. But I still highly
appreciate that all of our departments
did not get greedy this year, under-
standing the circumstances we were
at, which made this budget process so
much easier.”
Neatherlin said the budget em-
phasized protecting everyone’s jobs
within the county.
“Some of you give every year to
make this work, but this year was
exceptional,” Neatherlin said. “May
this be the best we can do, and I think
it is. We’re in a good position for this
county coming into the future.”
Neatherlin added there was much
for the commissioners to consider
this year, “so it was not for the faint
of heart.”
Commissioner Kevin Shutty
agreed with Neatherlin regarding
“the unique nature” of 2020.
“We know there are a lot of people
out there who are struggling and are
going to rely on county services in
the coming months, in maybe differ-
ent ways than they had in the past,”
Shutty said. “As Commissioner Neat-
herlin said, this is as good as it gets,
and I don’t say that in a way that di-
minishes this budget in any way.”
Shutty said he credited the budget
with “balancing the needs of the com-
munity with the financial resources
that are available to us,” even as it
continues to fully fund the county’s
reserves.
“We’ve also been able to make
some additional investments in
parts of the county government that-
needed it,” Shutty said. “We’ll never
be able to address every concern in
every budget, so this is always an in-
terim process, always building on the
previous year’s work.”
Shutty said that the county will
need to remain focused on “living
within our means.” Shutty thanked
budget staff and support services for
their efforts in ensuring the county
was prepared for this year’s budget
process, which District 3 Commis-
sioner Sharon Trask seconded.
“I’ve said in the past that this
is going to be a year for the record
books,” Trask said. “I think next year
V is going to be a difficult year, but I do
believe the budget that we’re going
to adopt today is a' very good, solid
budgetelthink the citizens of Mason
County will look at it and appreciate
the hard work that’s gone into it.”
County authorizes telework, housing grant extension
e§"'kiéi Boxleitner
kboxleitner@masoncounty com
Mason County commissioners voted to approve the
updated Mason County Telework Authorized Essen-
tial Employees for Support Services and the Depart-
ment of Commerce COVID-19 Outbreak Emergency
Housing Grant Contract Amendment to extend the
contract from Dec. 31 to June 30.
Because the teleworkers’ compensation and ben-
efits do not change due to their participation in the
telework program, the program doesn’t affect the
budget. Per Mason County Resolution 2020-29, “In
the event of an unusual weather condition, extreme
circumstance, or other public health emergencies, an
elected official may authorize critical employees to
telework without completing the forms and training
as required in the policy.”
Twenty Mason County employees are deemed
“critical” during the COVID emergency.
The terms stipulate all teleworkers must protect
“information assets” from unauthorized access and
use by others, including family members, friends and
other visitors.
Such'information assets cannot be left in unat-
tended or unlocked vehicles, or in other unsecured
locations where. they can be easily stolen, and all
county-issued equipment likewise must be protected
from unauthorized access and use by others, includ-
ing the teleworkers’ personal equipment.
The purpose of the Department of Commerce CO-
VID-19 Outbreak Emergency Housing Grant is to
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provide funding for emergency housing necessary to
respond to the public health needs of people experi-
encing homelessness or otherwise in need of quaran-
tine or isolation housing due to the pandemic. The
Department of Commerce is extending the end date
of the grant from Dec. 31 to June 30, and the purpose
of this extension is to maintain:
I Isolation and quarantine housing, relative to
cases identified by the Department of Health.
I Additional shelter capacity to replace the shelter
capacity lost when social distancing was increased.
I Sanitation in existing homeless housing.
There are no budget effects to Mason County
from approving this grant contract extension, as the
grant amount remains $505,405, with Mason County
Health Services serving as the grantee.
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