Mahoning commissioners adopt 2017 budgets, approve wastewater project loan

YOUNGSTOWN

Mahoning County commissioners adopted 2017 budgets of $34.2 million for the general fund and slightly more than $28 million for the justice fund.

The numbers are identical to the revenue amounts certified for each budget by the county budget commission, which consists of the county prosecutor, auditor and treasurer.

They compare with original 2016 general and justice fund appropriations of $34,067,135 and $27,495,661, respectively, adopted a year ago.

Revised appropriations, however, raised the 2016 totals to $35,264,316 for the general fund and $27,875,433 for the justice fund.

The general fund is the county’s main operating fund, which supports the courts and central operations of county government.

The justice fund consists of the sheriff’s, prosecutor’s and coroner’s offices and 911 emergency dispatching center.

“It’s a responsible approach to budgeting for next year,” county Auditor Ralph Meacham said of the new budgets at Thursday’s commissioners’ meeting.

In other action, the commissioners approved borrowing from the U.S. Department of Agriculture $12,973,000 for projects related to the closing of the New Middletown Wastewater Treatment Plant and the transfer of all the sewage it treats to the Boardman treatment plant.

Read more about the matters in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.