Western Nebraska Regional Airport is raising its budget slightly to keep up with the rising cost of operations.
At the WNRA board meeting on Wednesday, directors reviewed their upcoming budget for the 2013-14 year.
CPA Dana Weber, of Scottsbluff ,presented to the board the amount of property tax per non-bonds purchases or operating expenses is $836,194 and the amount to pay the principal and interest on bonds on the new terminal building is $193,712, with a total tax levy of $1,029,906.
Airport Director Darwin Skelton said maintenance costs at the airport seem to be going up because building and operating costs continue to rise.
“It seems hard to believe that this building is going on 10 years old and the maintenance costs go up. Things are starting to wear out more,” he said.
The board approved an additional 1 percent increase in the allowable 2013-14 taxing authority.
Weber presented to the board the allowable increases that amounted to $6,500.
“It’s not a big dollar number, but each year we’ve done this to try to maintain at base with inflation and rising costs,” he said
Airport Chairman Don Overman said even with the $6,500 not being a large increase, it does pay for various items and it is important that the airport has those additional funds.
Airport board member Neal Smith said directors continue as a board to find ways through technology and other advancements to keep the budget the same or equal to be responsible with funds.
“We have historically kept it under the max (percentage),” Overman said, “including this extra fund.”
The board approved a purchase contract for land at the end of runway 5. The 2.81 acres of land was recently sold to new owners and the airport plans to make a deal this January to purchase it for $8,100 for 20 years. Other similar land purchasing agreements will be made on all other existing runways at a later date.
“This is very important in our master plan that the FAA wanted us to get [ownership of] various runways and this is the first one to come up and we negotiated this price,” Overman said.