The Knox County Board decided this week to cover less liability insurance and workmen’s compensation expenses for certain departments, starting next month.But agencies like the Mary Davis Home, the county highway department and public health department say they can handle it for the next fiscal year.
Knox County Board member Dick Conklin says the departments need to be self-sustaining and after five years they will have the pay the entire liability expenses.
Rod Cleair runs the Mary Davis Home, which is a detention center that houses more than 20 juveniles from more than a dozen counties in the state.
He says coming up with an extra $15,000 dollars a few years ago would have been an enormous struggle. But Cleair says they’ve built up resources to cushion the impact.
“We’re, I hate to say we’re more than happy to do it,” Cleair says. “Because you’re never happy to spend extra money, but you know, the county has helped us out through the tough times so you know if we can help out there. Again, we’re all in this together.”
Members of the county health department and the highway department say the switch will have a minor impact on their budgets in the next fiscal year.
County Engineer Duane Ratermann, of the highway department, says the impact for the coming fiscal year is small, about $5,000 dollars.
But he says he’s not sure how much of an impact it’ll have when the department has to budget for the entire cost.
The change also affects the Veterans Assistance Commission, as well as the nursing home, landfill, animal control departments. The county approved its budget this week with no increase in its property tax levy.
