County considering 3% employee pay raise and tax increase
By Bobby Bryant, Editor
editor@newsandpress.net
It’s still early in the process of building a budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1, but Darlington County Council is considering a 3 percent pay raise for county employees and a relatively small tax increase.
During discussions March 6 at a budget work session held at the Pee Dee Regional Council of Governments offices near Florence-Darlington Technical College, County Administrator Charles Stewart asked council to consider proposals for a pay raise and a tax increase.
No votes on either have been taken, and it likely will be a while before council votes on such proposals.
This meeting essentially was the kick-off for talks on the fiscal 2022-23 budget.
Stewart said a 3 percent “cost-of-living adjustment” for county employees would cost about $718,000 a year.
He said that still would be below the more than 4 percent rise in the Consumer Price Index.
Council also was asked to consider a proposal to generate about $1 million in new revenue for the county’s general fund through a tax increase of 4.4 mills.
Stewart said such an increase would cost the owner of a $100,000 house about $15 or $16 more in taxes per year.
Council members did not immediately indicate how they might stand on the proposals, and council Chairman Bobby Hudson and Vice Chairman Le Flowers were not present for the section of the meeting that the News & Press attended.