The 1994 Box Elder County budget was amended from $7,996,734 to $8,270,234 after a public hearing Dec. 6 by the Box Elder County Commission.
Funds were then moved from a "carry-over" fund to cover the $273,500 shortfall and put the budget in balance. According to Box Elder County Auditor/Treasurer Carlla Secrist the "carry-over" fund consists of money and property accumulated over past years when income exceeded outgo.
The main cause of the 1994 shortfall was the county's unexpected $380,200 in firefighting costs due to extensive wild fires. The amount originally budgeted was $142,700.
Other unexpected expenses included $10,000 for the public defender, $1,000 for the Law Library, $5,000 for cloud seeding and $20,000 for the computer department.
There was no public comment.