MIDDLEBURG — Snyder County Commissioner Joe Kantz was a guest on WKOK’s On The Mark program, speaking about a number of things that have happened recently in the county. Kantz talked about funds that are left over that are helpful in the first quarter of the year.
Kantz explained, “Normally there is a carryover from year to year and we need that, quite frankly, because if you are a county, like any business, you know when your income is coming in throughout the year. Counties don’t receive property tax revenues until after March, so we’ve got to make sure we have enough money to get us through the first quarter of the year so that we can pay our employees, pay the bills and pay the lights, you know, all that sort of thing. We need to be able to get by until the tax moneys start rolling in for the following year.”
Kantz also talked about improvement projects they have budgeted for, “It has been our policy to try and knock out at least one major infrastructure project, whether it’s a building maintenance project, new roof, new windows or whatever it may be. But we have done it in a strategic way so that we are not borrowing money for any of these projects. When I came into office in 2008, our debt for the county was about $7.5-million. Today we are less than $2-million and I’m proud to say that our term ends in 2019, and the first month I believe in 2020, the debt will be eliminated in Snyder County.
And he talked about a change in recycling for the county, “All of our recyclables have been going to the Lycoming County landfill recycling center. They notified us about 2 1/2 to 3 months ago saying that what cost us zero in the past number of years, will now cost us $130 per pull.”
Kantz said they tried to be proactive to help with the rise in costs, “The commissioners met with all of the recycling centers in Snyder County and all of the players involved in that process and listened. Our solution is temporary, but our solution is we are offering a grant to the four countywide recycling centers to help offset the cost of those pulls that are going to happen this year. It’s a one year deal. A one time thing.”
You can hear more from Joe Kantz from WKOK’s On The Mark program online at www.wkok.com. (Ali Stevens)
