A previous version of this article misstated when trustees Jim Houser and Cathy Swank’s raises would take effect. The raises are retroactive to January 2022.
MADISON TOWNSHIP — Madison Township trustees voted to purchase a mini excavator they expect to pick up by the end of the month.
Trustees voted to use $92,860 from American Rescue Plan Act funds to buy a loading trailer and a Kubota KX057-5 mini excavator.
“We have no Gradall (excavator) at this time and that’s what we used for a lot of work in the past,” said Trustee Tom Craft.
The mini excavator can be used for ditch work and landscaping. Craft said an excavator is easier to manage than the backhoe the township is replacing. The excavator has an attachment that can swivel in any direction.
Trustees also reviewed the township’s remaining ARPA funds. Fiscal officer Leanna Rhodes said the township has $508,000 remaining funds. The township is able to use ARPA funds to increase salaries of trustees.
Because the Ohio Township Association sets trustee salaries based on how large a township’s budget is, Madison Township had to review its salaries with the ARPA funds it received.
The $1 million in ARPA funds pushed Madison Township into the $6 to 10 million budget bracket for 2022. This means the OTA suggests trustee compensation of $94.53 per day. Madison Township trustees currently make $72.94 per day.
Rhodes said trustees can waive salary increases, which Craft chose to do at the special meeting.
Trustees Jim Houser and Cathy Swank voted to keep their raises, which will they will each get in a lump sum retroactive to January. After the lump sum, Houser and Swank will receive bi-weekly paychecks reflective of their higher pay.
Rhodes said trustees may vote again on their daily compensation next year if the township is still in the larger budget bracket due to unused ARPA funds.
“ARPA is basically a temporary thing,” Rhodes said. “Once that money is gone, we go back to under the $6 million budget category.”
Rhodes’ annual salary was suggested for an increase to $28,782 earlier this year because of the township’s temporary budget increase. She said she elected to accept the increase earlier this year.
Craft said he thinks there is a better use of ARPA funds than a personal salary increase.
“We get paid per (Ohio Revised Code) for what we do and I just feel that, right now, there’s better uses of ARPA money than to put it in my pocket,” he said. “That’s just my personal opinion.”
