By Sara StrongShared expenses like law enforcement, the Community Library and the Pool and Fitness Center were reviewed in a joint city of Luverne and county meeting Tuesday. Both are trying to save money for 2004. Law enforcement costs increased this year with more prisoners and prisoner medical expenses. The state is also requiring all prisoners with sentences of a year or less to stay in the county jails, and prisoners with longer sentences have to serve the final six months in county jail too.Those circumstances, combined with the county’s $46,000 loss in Criminal Justice state aid, means all of the county will have to pay more for police protection.The county is meeting with all cities to discuss per capita charges for services.Tuesday’s meeting with Luverne was to review the budget and suggest to Sheriff Mike Winkels areas that could be cut.The joint boards gave him direction to look at more leasing options for department vehicles.Winkels said, for instance, that buying an investigator vehicle and leasing four squad cars would cost $75,000 next year. Leasing seven and not buying the investigator car would cost $69,000. There are other considerations like radios and radar in the cars that aren’t figured into the costs.Also, the department could give just 20-hour-per-day coverage and save about $50,000.The total law enforcement budget, including dispatching, is $1.38 million.LibraryLibrarian Glenda Bremer spoke about the Rock County Community Library’s budget.The county and city split the library budget, which was proposed at $228,566 for 2004.With revenue essentially limited to late fines and room rentals, the library has to get all of its operating expenses from the city and county. The joint boards said they’d prefer to contribute less than proposed to the library, and asked Bremer to consider spending some fund balances and reducing purchases.Even following those suggestions, staff, services and hours may have to be reduced.Bremer said, "I don’t like it, but I suppose cutting the rural services could be an option."The minimum contribution from the city and county is $92,000, based on a state formula.Pool and FitnessThe joint operation of the Rock County Pool and Fitness Center will try to increase revenue for 2004 by raising memberships 10 percent and increasing lessons by 12 percent.The new agreement with Sioux Valley Hospitals and Health System will also bring in more money at $1,000 a month for the use of the facility for therapy.The Rock County Pool Commission hasn’t had a meeting to review the proposed budget.The boards also suggested to manager Carol Wessels that the Pool and Fitness Center forego the $15,000 in capital improvement set aside for major repairs or upgrades. That fund now has $139,000.Rock County Commissioner Ken Hoime said, "Being that there’s so much build up, I believe we can go without contributing to it this year. We have built up a good cushion and that’s good to have, but we could put it off this year."For 2004, the projected budget calls for both the city and county to contribute $69,000, but the county said it would prefer to reduce that to $58,000.
