DuPage approves $449.4 million spending plan for 2015

DuPage County will start its fiscal year Monday with a spending plan that sets aside money for heroin prevention education, human services grants and a list of capital projects.

The $449.4 million budget, which county board members adopted on Tuesday, also calls for maintaining the current level of property taxes.

"We are committed to doing more with less," county board Chairman Dan Cronin said before the vote. "This budget is a testament to that pledge."

County officials said more than $34 million has been cut from the budget since 2010 and DuPage has managed to hold the line on property taxes during that time.

"We tightened our belts where it made sense and kept our property tax flat," Cronin said. "This strategy allows us to maintain, and in some cases, enhance services without asking for more from taxpayers."

With sales tax revenue projected to grow by 3.75 percent to $94.1 million in 2015, county officials can keep the property tax levy unchanged at $66.6 million.

"It's a status quo budget, which in DuPage County means a zero percent property tax increase and fewer employees working at the county," said county board member Paul Fichtner, who is chairman of the board's finance committee.

As part of the spending plan, the county's full-time head count will be reduced by two positions to 2,225. Fichtner said both jobs are being eliminated through attrition.

DuPage's nonunion employees will receive 2 percent cost-of-living increases. Officials also will use $500,000 the county saved on its health insurance to boost the salaries of supervisors in several departments.

The budget also includes $57.5 million in capital projects for stormwater, drainage and road construction.

Projects planned for 2015 include $1 million for repair and maintenance of the Elmhurst Quarry and the Spring Creek Reservoir near Bloomingdale. Another $1 million will be spent on sanitary sewer rehabilitation and upgrades at various locations throughout the county's collection system.

Major road projects in the budget include intersection improvements and traffic signal modernization at Fabyan Parkway and Route 38 in West Chicago. The county also plans to replace the Warrenville Road bridge that spans the West Branch of the DuPage River.

To combat heroin, the county will spend $100,000 for a public education campaign targeted at heroin prevention. DuPage began the campaign this year to inform families about warning signs and where to find help.

DuPage also will continue to offer $1 million in grant money to human services agencies. Recipients of the grants include organizations serving homeless youth, seniors, veterans and the unemployed, officials said.

"They have been very effective partners with us in serving the community," Cronin said of the grant recipients. "So for $1 million, it's a bargain."