Beaufort County’s Board of Commissioners approved the 2016-17 budget ordinance Monday night amidst residents’ concerns about a 2-cent property tax hike.

The budget comes in at $56,780,790. Included are an ad valorem tax increase from 53 cents per $100 valuation to 55 cents and a residential solid waste fee of $145 per year, an increase of $50 per year — the result of moving solid waste into its own self-supporting enterprise fund. Solid waste fees had not been increased in eight years and previously had been subsidized by the General Fund, according to Commissioner Frankie Waters.

“As part of the General Fund, all taxpayers were paying for it,” Waters said.

The Washington Township, Long Acre West, Long Acre East, Bath Township, Pantego Township, Chocowinity Township and Richland Township water districts will also see a 3-percent increase in monthly water rates for both residential and commercial users, which has been an ongoing discussion for the county board.

“It’s been planned out for several years that they were going to have to raise (water rates) to ramp up to handle the debt service,” said Beaufort County Manager Brian Alligood.

Bath and Pamlico Beach residents will now be paying a 5-cents-per-$100 valuation EMS service district tax; while Old Ford/Cherry Run residents will see an increase of the same from 4 cents to 4.5 cents per $100 valuation.

Expansion of county services totals $1,156,033 and includes: a 2-percent cost of living increase for county employees; $107,000 for the first phase of a three-phase Beaufort County Courthouse renovation; the addition of a county maintenance worker; a Department of Social Services caseworker position; a $558,460 increase in Beaufort County Schools funding; and allocations to various nonprofits such as the Grace Martin Harwell Senior Center, Boys & Girls Club of Beaufort County; and Ruth’s House, the local domestic violence shelter.

A last minute addition of $2,000 was allocated to Eagle’s Wings, to support the food pantry’s backpack program, which sends less-privileged schoolchildren home on Fridays with backpacks of food for the weekend. Commissioners’ Chairman Jerry Langley made the motion to find $2,000 from elsewhere in the budget to fund the program after Eagle’s Wings Director Ann Marie Montague pleaded their case during the earlier public hearing.

“I respectfully ask that our county commissioners support the 114 children that we serve in backpack program,” Montague said. “We would appreciate any amount.”

The public hearing saw a lineup of a dozen residents who raised a variety of issues about the proposed budget, from Washington resident Casey Cox speaking out against property tax and solid waste fee increases, to East Carolina Aquatics coach Scott Pake beseeching commissioners to help fund the City of Washington’s Moore Aquatics and Fitness Center, which is currently risks closure due to financial issues.

Commissioners approved the budget ordinance by a 4-3 vote. Commissioners Robert Belcher, Gary Brinn and Hood Richardson made the dissenting votes. Richardson said he would not vote for a tax increase — that it was a “deficit budget.”

“I’m voting against this budget because there is not compassion in it as relates to families and businesses,” Richardson told the board.

Commissioners Frankie Waters and Ron Buzzeo made statements prior to the vote about the decision to raise the property tax.

Waters passed out a breakdown of the property tax and solid waste fee increases to commissioners and county staff, showing in real data what that would look like: a property tax increase of $50 per year, $4.17 per month on a $250,000 home; a $1.06 per week fee increase for solid waste customers.

“Raising taxes is not an easy thing to do,” Waters said. “I’m a taxpayer like everyone else who got up and spoke tonight. If we raise taxes, it affects Frankie and Cathy (Waters’ wife). We write that check.”

Buzzeo said he polled residents who brought their concerns about the property tax hike to him, asking what county services they would prefer to have cut.

“I never got any answers,” Buzzeo said.

Alligood said this year’s budget making process was tough for both county staff and commissioners.

“It’s always difficult. It was a little more difficult for us this year simply because of everybody being new and for us to get a good handle on where things were historically. It will be an easier process for us mechanically next year, but not from a policy standpoint,” Alligood said, referring to the turnover of many key county administrative positions in recent years.

From a policy standpoint, commissioners had a choice: cut services or raise taxes, Alligood said.

“For those services to continue to be provided, you either have to cut services or you have to increase revenues to pay for those services, so we had to increase revenues to pay for those services,” Alligood said. “The question then becomes, ‘What service do you not want anymore?’ And that’s what the board struggles with. …. I don’t ever see that not being a tough policy debate. Do you provide? Do you not provide? That’s always a difficult police debate. I don’t think you’ll ever find anyone who says it’s easy.”

The budget ordinance will be available at www.co.beaufort.nc.us by Wednesday, Alligood said. Follow the “Government” link, then click on “County Budgets” to see the approved 2016-17 budget.