Meath County Council adopts €124m budget for 2019

Meath County Councillors have adopted the budget for 2019 which means the local authority will spend almost €124 million on services next year which includes a €13million increase on the 2018 budget.
Councillors adopted the annual budget for 2019 at a meeting on Monday afternoon with plans for increased spending across a number of areas including. 
– €27,329,970 on housing - an increase of €5,585 on this year
– €37,818,354 on roads - an increase of €3.2million on 2018 
The Council proposes to reduce the charge at its recycling centres from €3 to €2 and has allocated €290,468 under a new heading of climate change and flooding, as it moves to place particular emphasis on the environment.
Presenting the budget, Jackie Maguire, Chief Executive, said: “I am delighted to say that we are in a strong position to maintain service levels and provide additional resources in critical areas. In preparing the budget, we have identified particular areas where increased investment is required, and have put in place a targeted programme to address these needs,” she said.
Fiona Lawless, Head of Finance, said commercial rates account for the biggest single chunk of income at €37million or 30 per cent of the overall budget.
Government grants at €34 million make up 28 per cent of revenue, while local property tax at €14 million is the third highest source of income at 11 per cent.

See more detail in this week's paper!