The Town of Jonesville has approved a budget for the 2012-2013 fiscal year.

The most notable change in this year’s budget involves the lowering of the town’s tax rate by 8 cents in order to off-set the fire tax that will be imposed by Yadkin County as a result of the transfer of Jonesville Fire Department to Arlington Fire and Rescue.

The budget states “With the knowledge that Arlington Fire and Rescue Inc. has requested and Yadkin County is likely to impose a fire tax of eight cents per one hundred dollars of assessed valuation upon property located within the Town, the Town hereby reduces its ad valorem tax rate by an equivalent amount. Therefore, the Town’s tax rate is set to forty cents per 100 of assessed valuation for the fiscal year 2012-13.”

This tax decrease was a top priority of Jonesville Town Council.

“We were very serious about what we said when we started the transfer. We told our citizens it would not cost any more on their taxes, and that’s something we have followed through on,” said Jonesville Town Manager Scott Buffkin. “We said that any increase our citizens would see, we would off-set.”

The budget also includes an approximate 20% increase in Jonesville’s water rates in order to maintain the system in an operational manner and to begin setting aside reserves for the impending water plant project.

The budget states “The Town has been successful in securing grant funds of approximately 2.1 million toward the total estimated cost of 4.5 million, or about 47% of the cost for the water plant project. Even with this level of support, water rates will likely need to be increased by a similar percentage for the next one to two years to cover all operational costs and to make the additional debt service payments that the project will require.”

“No one wants to raise rates, but it could not be avoided at the point,” Buffkin said. “We hope we will not have to raise water rates in the future, but we cannot say that beyond this year.”

Reach Darcie Dyer at 835-1513 or ddyer@heartlandpublications.com.