2021 Proposed Budget
Riverview Park, Holland
The Public Hearing for the 2021 Ottawa County Budget has been set for Tuesday, September 8, to be held in the Ottawa County Board Room, 12220 Fillmore Street, West Olive, at 1:30p.m. You can review the budget here.
The 2021 Budget assumes a $4.62M (4.87%) increase in overall General Fund revenue for total revenues of $91.66M and a $4.18M (4.69%) increase in overall General Fund Expenditures for total expenditures of $92.95M. The Budget assumes a drawdown of $1.29M from Fund reserves.
The particular items that I am focused on are the following:
10102660 - Corporate Counsel
10102670 - Prosecuting Attorney
10102670 - Human Resources
10103250 - Central Dispatch
10101370 - Circuit Court Legal Self Help
10101490 - Circuit Court - Juvenile Service
10101720 - Administrator
10104490 - Road Commission
10107211 - Planning and Performance
10107212 - Ground Water Planning
10102230 - Strategic Initiative
10102990 - Public Defender’s office
If you have an item or issue that you would like clarification on or to spend some time on, please reach out to me at dzylstra@miottawa.org or 443-4281
Pre Paid Postage and Voting Equity
This November, it is calculated that approximately 80,000 Ottawa County residents could be voting by absentee ballot. Some of these will be longtime Absentee voters, some of them first timers. Some of them may live next to City Hall and will be able to utilize drop boxes located conveniently nearby, some will be living temporarily hundreds of miles from home.
To level the playing field, I believe that the County Board can and should take steps to make exercising the constitutional right to vote a little easier for everyone. But how?
Oakland County has made the decision to place pre-paid postage on all County residents’ return ballot. That is a very simple and reliable way to address the issue. However, because of our long term contract for ballot printing, such an action at this point would be cost prohibitive.
However, since the US Post Office is committed to make sure each ballot sent within the proper time frame arrives at the proper destination regardless of postage paid, I believe it would be possible to advertise this as a service available to out of area voters if the Board makes the commitment to reimburse local clerks who must pick up this expense directly from the US Post Office. I believe this is a workable solution to the issue and, while of course I don’t believe this step will close all voting inequities here, I do believe it will be a small but meaningful step towards that.
I realize that there is an element of uncomfortableness about an action like this on the Board, however if on the Board we only discuss and pursue policy that we’re comfortable with or that we have always done, we will never make inroads on our stated goals of increasing equity in our County and forging new possiblities for a diversifying County.
Absentee Voting August 4
Absentee Drop-off Box, City Hall, 270 River Ave.
This August 4, Holland voters will have the Holland Public School Operating Millage on their Ballot. For safety's sake make sure you are set up and vote Absentee Ballot. Note that all ballots must be received by 8:00 pm on Election Day.
For more information, call the City Clerk’s office at 355-1301 or Ottawa County at https://www.miottawa.org/Departments/CountyClerk/Elections/vote-by-mail.htm