Anyone upset, overjoyed, perplexed or otherwise interested in Douglas County government’s proposed $45.62 million budget for next year has one more chance to speak up before the plan wins approval.

Commissioners will conduct a public hearing at 6:35 p.m. Wednesday to take any last-minute suggestions on a budget that calls for a 7.3 percent increase in property taxes and few increases in services.

“We constantly seek input, whether it’s in the public portion of the budget process or not,” Commissioner Jere McElhaney said.

The hearing, a formality mandated by state law, follows a rash of meetings that started in January.

By the time their meetings ended July 7, commissioners unanimously had agreed that the county’s property-tax rate should be set at 29.844 mills, or enough to cost the owner of a $150,000 home about $515 in taxes. That would be up $35 from this year’s rate, but the increase likely would be more, depending on the increase in a home’s valuation.

A mill equals $1 in property taxes for every $1,000 of a property’s valuation.

“It wasn’t always a 3-0 vote, but at least all the commissioners got some input and that’s what we’ll settle on,” McElhaney said.

The spending plan, as proposed, includes:

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• A boost in revenue to make up for the loss of $1.8 million in state transfer funds — money normally set aside to help the government offset its operating costs that instead is being kept by the state to help balance its own books.
• $260,000 in grants to help Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center, Douglas County Visiting Nurses Assn. and Independence Inc. offset expected cuts in Medicare and other state and federal financing sources.
• $2.33 million in the county’s equipment reserve fund, a cut of nearly 22 percent. The money serves as a savings account reserved for major purchases, such as buying ambulances, photocopiers and computer systems.
• Money to finance the hiring of new dispatchers for the county’s Emergency Communications Center. Three positions had been approved for inclusion in the 2003 budget but were eliminated after the county faced unexpected cuts in state financing.
• Funding for Sheriff Rick Trapp to hire two new deputies to bolster patrol ranks next year. The hirings will allow sheriff’s employees to provide transportation and courtroom-security services.