Burleigh County commissioners did some slashing of the 2008 budget requests in hopes of being able to present taxpayers with a zero dollar increase for the county portion of the property tax bill.

Burleigh accountant Clyde Thompson reported at Tuesday's meeting of the commission that the budget would provide Bismarck residents with a 4.7 mill reduction or about a $2.55 increase on a $150,000 house, the county portion of the tax bill being about $399.86.

But commissioners weren't happy with that and determined that by cutting about $75,000, or one-third of a mill, they would achieve a zero dollar increase for 2008.

First to go was $12,000 of a $32,800 request by Emergency Management for sirens. Commissioner Mark Armstrong said he had spoken to city commissioner Sandi Tabor, who committed the city to paying for a greater portion of the equipment, allowing the cut.

Next, a $25,000 request by Bismarck-Mandan Transit was cut from the budget entirely. At first, commissioner Doug Schonert asked that $10,000 be cut from the request.

Commission chairman Marlan Haakenson said that Transit is already receiving $8,000 through the Senior Citizens fund. Commissioners said they felt that the Transit administration budget was exorbitant at $123,000 in justifying a decision to cut the request entirely. Commissioner Jerry Woodcox made the motion, seconded by commissioner Jim Peluso and it was approved by the entire commission.

The commission then looked at Sheriff Pat Heinert's request to hire five new positions, three deputies and two detention officers. Woodcox said that two of the hirings could be made July 1 rather than Jan. 1 of next year, which would save the county about $39,000.

Heinert agreed with the plan, saying he could put off hiring a school resource officer and another deputy until mid-year. Commissioners took the sheriff up on the offer.

"I'd be remiss in not bringing up that the detention center has been running near capacity 95 percent of the time," Heinert said. "In the future, the county will need to look at ways to add on, remodel or even build another facility. It's not that far off."

With those cuts in hand, the commission figured it had reached the zero dollar increase of taxes.

"Why stop there?" Peluso asked. He then questioned the need for a $35,000 compensation study and asked Human Resource's director Renae Gall to justify the request.

Gall said that the last study was done in 2003 and it has been the county's practice to conduct the study every five years.

Commissioners Schonert and Woodcox defended the need for the project.

"It looks at whether the county is paying its employees properly and fairly," Schonert said. "It's like tax equalization. I think you have to do it. If not this year or next, you'll come to a point it needs to be done. We, as county government, don't have the expertise to do it."

Woodcox said that the county had the money available to conduct the study and it made sense to him to do it every five years. He said that next year's budget might be much different and preclude such a study being done.

Commissioners allowed the compensation study to remain in the budget. They then approved the preliminary budget and authorized publication and a hearing.

"I want to point out that the county's share of the tax bill is about 14 percent," Schonert said. "'We've managed to give all our employees about a 5 percent pay increase and provide for everything else with the same dollars we had last year. Not many businesses can do the same."

Armstrong said that the county did benefit with the state taking over child support services which saved Burleigh $500,000.

"We can't take all the credit," Armstrong said.

(Reach reporter Gordon Weixel at 250-8255 or gordon.weixel@;bismarcktribune.com.)