During the Helper City Council meeting, which was hosted on June 2, they tackled topics that most councils are facing this time of year: budgets.
Beginning, a public hearing was hosted for the possible adoption of the budget for the 2022-23 year. Helper City Mayor Lenise Peterman explained that the fiscal budget year runs from July 1 through June and she told the council members that they should have in their packets the resolution regarding the budget.
A citizen presented a question regarding the notice that expenditures will increase for the fiscal year, asking how the council proposes to meet this. Mayor Peterman explained that they attempt to project and have noticed increases in different revenue categories. The citizen asked if the council is considering raising individual property taxes. The answer was not at this time or in this fiscal year.
The council informed this resident that the previous tax increase came from Carbon County itself and that Helper City has not increased property taxes in a number of years.
The same citizen then asked if other fees may be increasing this year, such as electrical, garbage, water and sewer. Helper City Recorder Zack Tonc informed the citizen that each year, the garbage rate increases by at least $.25 and there is a percentage on the dumpsters. For the other fees, the possibility of those going up has not been discussed, but they have not currently seen a reason to set an increase.
Attention was then turned toward amending the budget year 2021-22, in which Mayor Peterman explained that this hearing is to amend the previous year’s budget.
Tonc explained that sales tax increased and there were a couple of grants that were received that had to be adjusted. There were also budget items for income that did not receive any income. No comments were received on this item, prompting the council to close the public hearing.
Both items were then adopted and approved by the council.