County Auditor-Treasurer Braidy Powers keeps his eye on the bottom line, and he tries to keep the county board informed. At the May 15, 2012 county board meeting, he updated commissioners on the status of the general fund.
Just under $1.2 million is tied up in loans to the Colvill, Gunflint, Lutsen, and Schroeder fire departments for buildings and equipment ($870,198), to Tofte Township for its biomass boiler ($31,350), to Lutsen Trailbreakers for a trail groomer ($40,000), to the Cook County Council on Aging for a building upgrade ($16,500), and to the Cook County/Grand Marais Economic Development Authority (EDA) for operating expenses ($225,000).
Pending or potential loans listed are to the Gunflint Fire Department for its fire hall and equipment ($330,000) and to the EDA to pay off revenue bonds ($470,000).
Potential short-term purchases included interagency-operable Allied Radio Matrix for Emergency Response (ARMER) equipment
($1,500,000), security upgrades to county buildings ($250,000), Highway Department satellite shop upgrades in the Tofte and Hovland shops ($1,250,000), and a federally required match for a runway extension ($1,200,000).
Additional loans, expenditures, and restrictions total just over $6 million.
Powers recommended setting aside half a million dollars for county employee “compensated absences” – payouts employees are entitled to if they don’t use vacation or sick leave.
All those loans, plans, and possibilities for the cash fund total about $12.9 million. The draft 2011 audit shows an as-yet-unassigned fund balance of $8,138,386. Powers suggested to the county board that they might want to bond to keep cash on hand in case they need it. The state and federal governments have gotten into trouble by not having enough on hand, Powers said. “I just want to keep our eye on that ball,” he said.
No action was taken.
1 percent tax revenue
In its second year of collection, the county’s 1 percent recreation and infrastructure tax has taken in 5.5 percent more than the previous period. From May 2011 through March of 2012, $1,086,645 was collected, versus $1,030,360 in the previous period.
Lodging tax
In the first quarter of 2012, the Cook County lodging tax took in 4.4 percent less than it took in the year before (counting just the businesses that had sent in their lodging taxes by the time the report was generated).
The Gunflint Trail Tourism Association was up 1.3 percent and the Grand Marais Area Tourism Association was up 3.4 percent. The Lutsen-Tofte Tourism Association, however, was down 6.2 percent.
The Ely lodging tax report showed a year-to-date decline of 14.8 percent.
Leave a Reply