The article “Jeannette officials OK preliminary budget with no tax hike” (Nov. 13, TribLIVE) lists budget costs of the four top departments in the city: police, $2 million; sanitation, $928,000; fire, $560,000; and streets, $527,000.
I would like to clarify the sanitation department costs. On the revenue side of the budget, the sanitation department will bring in $1,016,050. Total profit for 2021 is approximately $87,833. Plus, the sanitation department only picks up four days a week, and the employees work the street department on Wednesdays each week. Total annual hours: 2,496.
This enables the street department to accomplish so much with the addition of six employees on Wednesdays. The department only has four full-time employees.
If we didn’t have our sanitation department in Jeannette, the taxpayers would have to pay an additional two mills of taxes to balance the budget.
Council, our administration and I are working tirelessly to address budgeting concerns.
Curtis J. Antoniak
Jeannette
The writer is mayor of Jeannette.