PORT TOWNSEND -Jefferson County commissioners approved the 2008 county budget on Monday, with a general fund of $14.5 million and an overall budget of almost $48 million.
Of the requested addition of 15.54 full-time-equivalent employees requested from department heads, the county commissioners approved 3.34.
The employee increase will show up in the county Department of Public Health for monitoring water quality, related to the clean water district that was adopted earlier this year.
“I would have liked to have completely funded the clean water district,” said Commissioner John Austin, D-Port Ludlow.
The east county clean water district plan was estimated to cost about $500,000, with the proposal of an $18-per-parcel fee to pay for it.
After much opposition, the commissioners opted to create the district without a funding source. The funding source will be analyzed by a committee that was recently formed.
