The Jackson Town Council could make a budget change that could cost Teton County almost 6 million dollars.
The Town and County currently split the expenses of joint departments like the Fire/EMS and Parks and Recreation based on the population split calculated by the census.
That split is currently 54% for the county and 46% for the town.
Town councilors voted to change the split that moves the Town of Jackson’s share down to 33% that would reduce the projected amount funded by the town by 5.8 million dollars.
The change, the Town Council says, is based on the Town’s ability to pay.
With current budget numbers being proposed it means the town would contribute about 14.3 million dollars for joint departments.
Councilman Arne Jorgensen said the reduction in proposed funding from the town does not reflect a dissatisfaction in the work of the joint departments, “None of this from my standpoint is being should be read as any kind of suggestion the work that’s being done by the joint department is not great work it is great work it’s so important to our priorities to our community and I think it’s really important for us to be really clear about that this has nothing to do with the value of the work that we’re talking about.”
The departments that are jointly funded by the town include the Housing Department, the START Bus, The Joint Planning Department, Fire/EMS, Parks and Recreation, Dispatch, Pathways, Treatment Court, Emergency Management, the Animal Shelter, and Victims Services.
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