County starts on next year’s budget

By Terry Murry on Friday, October 22nd, 2021 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories

UMATILLA COUNTY – Umatilla County’s new budget kicked in on July 1, but the budget for the next fiscal year is already in the works. Board of Commissioners Chairman George Murdock, the board’s budget liaison, started the tradition of getting to work early so there are fewer last-minute surprises in the process.

“In terms of services, I think we’ll be able to be stable in the coming year, and that is a really good place to be,” Murdock said.

A desire for stability has driven the budget process ever since Murdock became involved.

“Our desire has been to have a stable level of programs and services,” he said. “We don’t want to have big ups and big downs. We just want to be steady. Obviously, it costs more from one year to the next. Salaries go up. Heat, lights, and water go up. Gasoline has really gone up. We have to cope from the growing demands from one year to the next.”

The current budget year ends on June 30, 2022.