Bartlett approves $52.1 million budget

The Bartlett village board approved a $52.1 million balanced budget earlier this month that includes three new positions in the public works and police department, vehicle replacements and continued roadwork.

The budget, which passed unanimously on April 2, doesn’t include the use of any reserves and it keeps the general corporate fund tax levy flat while restoring a number of requests that had been deferred in various departments in recent budget years.

Revenues and expenditures are up in the 2013-14 budget, which runs from May 1, 2013, to April 30, 2014. The change in revenue can be attributed to increases from the state income tax, while the 2012 road program accounts for the majority of the increase in expenditures.

After multiple reviews of the budget, the board agreed to include a $41,500 curb installation in the Bartlett Cemetery that had previously been cut. Board members agreed, in turn, to eliminate $6,000 worth of GPS devices for golf carts from the golf course budget and $37,000 worth of Microsoft Office 2013 products from the central services budget.

Another highlight of the budget is the redesign of the village website, which hasn’t been updated since 2006.

The last time the police department requested more personnel was in the 2009-10 fiscal year. Each of the new police officers’ salaries will be $59,200. Vehicle purchases for the department range from a K-9 vehicle for $31,000 to a Segway, which has proved helpful in fighting vandalism at Bartlett Hills, for $8,500.

The new maintenance worker who will be hired in the public works department will receive a salary of $44,176.

The budget resolution included an agreement that village staff will indicate in future budgets how many years a capital outlay request had been asked for and not funded. It also stated that updates on the $21,000 of budgeted advertising at the golf course will be provided to the board at a six month budget review.