By Susan Bromley

Staff Writer

Brandon Twp.- The township board unanimously approved at their Nov. 14 meeting the 2017 budget, which includes a 2 percent wage increase for fire department and township employees.

The general fund budget has projected revenues of $2,071,805 and expenditures of $2,063,641.

“Our budget is healthy, we are in very good shape fiscally,” said Supervisor Kathy Thurman. “We have some money set aside for road improvements, we haven’t determined what they will be yet… I thought the wage increases were fair.”

Elected officials will not receive a salary increase. All fire department personnel and township employees will receive a 2 percent wage increase and the senior center coordinator and parks and recreation director will receive a 2 percent increased in overtime allowances. Planning commission and zoning board of appeals will receive bumps in meeting pay– $80 per meeting for the chairpersons, and $75 per meeting for members.

The board also approved at their meeting a 2-year contract with the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office for 12 deputies which shows a .2 percent increase for 2017, to $1,606,625 and a 2.65 percent increase for 2018, in which the township will pay $1,650,348 for police protection.

“I think the increases are reasonable, we receive a lot of benefit from contracting with Oakland County that we wouldn’t get if we had our own police department,” Thurman said.