The Kokomo Tribune from Kokomo, Indiana • Page 2

2 Kekeme (Ind.j Tribune Thursday, Sept. 6, 1979 AV. Tents up Tents, shown going up here, are ready and streets are blocked off around the courthouse square in preparation for the 11 th annual Tipton County Pork Festival. The three-day celebration officially opens today. Serving of pork dinners began at noon.

(Tribune staff photo) Pork barbecues fire up in Tipton TIPTON, Ind The scent of pork chops, pork burgers and pork barbecue filled the air today as hundreds of people turned out for the opening of the llth annual Tipton County Pork Festival. Art and craft shows and commercial exhibits opened today and a kick-off parade is set for 5 p.m. The parade features candidates in the Miss Pork Cuisine Pageant, local clubs, organizations, youth groups, scouts, athletic teams, and school and church groups. The grand par- ade will be at 1:30 p.m. Saturday.

A circus follows the kick-off parade. A troupe from the Peru Circus City Festival will present a 45-minute program of aerial acts on a high wire stretched across the front lawn of the courthouse. A pigskin stye show will be held in the entertainment tent at 7 p.m. Highlighting tonight's events is the Miss Pork Cuisine Pageant at 8 p.m. in the entertainment tent.

Five finalists will be chosen from the field of 17 Miss Congeniality will be voted on by all contestants. The 1979 Miss Pork Cuisine will be crowned by last year's queen, Lisa Amsbury, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Don Amsbury, Tipton R.R. 2.

Miss Amsbury also holds the title Miss Indiana World and will complete in the Miss World America contest. Breakfast will be served starting at 5 a.m. Friday with all the sausage, eggs and pancakes one can eat for $2 for adults and $1.50 lor children. Lunches will be served each day at 11 a.m. and dinners at 4:30 p.m.

Dinners are as follows: No. 1 includes, one pork chop, two sides, pie and drink, No. 2, two pork chops, two sides, pie and drink, No. 3, one sandwich, two sides, pie and drink, No. 4, one sandwich, one side, drink, No.

5, sandwich and drink, $1.35, and No. 6, pie and drink, 85 cents. Tipton salary proposals take beating By Julie Saylor Tribune staff writer TIPTON, Ind. Tipton County councilmen cut S122.589.61 from the proposed 1980 county budget after a two-day evaluation of proposed 1980 appropriations. Most of the budget cuts subtracted substantially from proposed county employee salaries.

The councilmen cut the proposed 1980 salary hikes from an overall 23.2 percent across-the-board increase to 7.1 percent. With few exceptions, most appointed and elected county officials received a 5 percent wage increase, with their assistants first and second deputies receiving 10 percent wage increases. Deputy auditor Amy Holbrook explained thai the councilmen chose to raise the deputy salaries at a higher percentage to make up for the increasing difference in salaries between the elected officials and their assistants. Perhaps the most significant salary cut occurred when the councilmen voted against a 5 percent wage increase for themselves. The councilmen did approve a 5 percent increase for the county commissioners.

The only budget that was approved as submitted, salary requests included, was the county home budget. Mrs. Holbrook noted that the salaries were left intact, and the budget approved as submitted, because the workers there are paid minimum wage, which was requested in the budget. Following the budget cuts, the general fund proposal now contains $905,737.90: the health fund, the local road and street fund, the highway fund, the cumulative bridge fund, and the welfare fund, $369.612. Mrs.

Holbrook said the tax rate to support the budget before the budget cuts would have been $1.80 per S100 assessed valuation, but now that the budget has been cut, the tax rate will be closer to $1.52 per S100 assessed valuation. The proposed 1980 budget is based on an assessed valuation of $61,608,625, which Mrs. Holbrook said should increase to $80 million when she receives the new assessed valuation figures from the state. With an assessed valuation figure of $80 million, Mrs. Holbrook estimates that the final tax rate for the county in 1980 will be close to SI.25.

The 1979 tax rate is Si. 19 per $100 assessed valuation. The proposed county budget will now be submitted to the County Tax Adjustment Board who will review- it Monday. While portions of salaries were the main item subtracted from most budgets, the councilmen also disapproved several other major requests in the proposed budgets from individual county agencies. The sheriff's department budget was cut $21,449.46, which included salaries for two additional radio operators that the department hoped to hire.

Following budget cuts, the department's budget totals $100,155. The department had originally requested $121,604.46. The councilmen also denied funds to provide temporary office help for the health department, a request which amounted to $1,000 in the proposed budget. The department originally had requested funds of $64,683, which also included appropriations to purchase two cars for nurses' transportation. The councilmen denied the request for the funds for the cars, cutting the health department budget $19,535.41.

The department's budget now stands at $45,147. A promotion in the health department also was approved by the councilmen. Norma formerly holding the title of secretary in the department, will now hold the title of administrative clerk. The County Extension Office will not receive funding for a summer intern to work with Tipton County 4-H members in 1980. The councilmen cut the office's budget by $3,152.42 which included that was to be used for the summer intern's salary.

The office's proposed budget was cut to $42,209. The prosecutor's office received approval from the council for two staff promotions. Sally McFall, the prosecutor's secretary, will now receive a salary as a full-time county employee. Joe Kemper, a part-time investigator for the prosecutor's office, will now be hired as a full-time employee, providing that state and federal funds totaling $6,551.70 are received by the county to pay a portion of his salary. The county has appropriated $3,000 in matching funds to hire Kemper as a 1:1 Today County councilmen propose salary increases for 1980 full-time investigator for the prosecutor's office.

Other budget cuts included: Circuit court clerk Budget approved at $39,758 after being cut $3,856.60. Auditor Budget approved at $45,773 after being cut $4,726.80. Treasurer Budget approved at $39,297 after being cut $2,609.20. Recorder Budget approved at $24,156 after being cut $2,459.10. Coroner Budget approved at $5,075 after being cut $2,251.20.

Assessor Budget approved at $23,158.50 after being cut $3,308.80. Cicero Township assessor Budget approved at $10,082 after being cut $2,650.34. Election Board Budget approved at $30,825 after being cut $1,800. Planning Commission Budget approved at $25,403 after being cut $1,146.01. Drainage board Budget approved at $55,774 after being cut $3,192.88.

Veterans Office Budget approved at $12,627 after being cut $829.85. County commissioners Budget approved at $385,093.25 after being cut $2,420, Courthouse Budget approved at $33,500 after being cut $200. Jail Budget approved at $29,756 after being cut $955.58. Circuit court Budget approved at $81,866 after being cut $19,880.86. '50-50 chance' of no strike at Delco By Pasquale Rocchlo Tribune business writer Delco Electronics Division has a "50-50 chance" of not going out on strike If a new contract between the United Auto Workers and General Motors is not approved by Sept.

15, according to a local union official. However, Al Currella, shop chairman for UAW Local 292 which represents workers at Delco, said, "Everybody is optimistic of getting a contract without a strike." If a strike is called by the UAW, he said it would be a mini-strike affecting 25 to 35 percent of GM's plants. The union designated GM as the company to be struck if there Is no agreement and said it might close only plants making popular small cars. Asked If GM might then shut all its plants, George B. Morris GM vice president, said the company was "keeping all our options open." Delco and Local 292 officials are back at the negotiating table after a recess allowing union representatives to attend a meeting In Detroit.

Curella said the tempo of the talks has picked up but some major problem have been shoved back and have not received their share of the limelight. Nationally, the UAW and GM are starting to zero in on the key issue in this year's talks pensions. Curella said the national talks apparently are moving slowly. But he said there was still time to get the job done before the Sept. 14 deadline.

He added one of the major issues in local negotiations is the policy involved in transferring employees to other jobs. In 1976, talks between Delco and Local 292 here dragged on for 10 months before a local agreement was reached; there was no strike over the local agreement. The national UAW will make a revised pension demand "very shortly," UAW President Douglas A. Eraser said Wednesday following a session which was devoted to pension investment policy. "We'll let them know first what it is," Eraser said when asked for details of the revised demand.

Earlier in the talks, the UAW reportedly proposed the fixing of pensions at 60 percent of the pensioner's last wage level. That way, the pension would go up when the wage went up. The company called the idea of such a tie-in unacceptable and Fraser later said the formula used to protect pensioners against inflation was not important as long as enough money was devoted to pensions in this year's settlement. GM's pension funds are huge, $7.14 billion for all employees, including non-UAW members, as of Dec. 31.

The UAW part of the fund would be about half that. For 20 years, the union has been seeking to divert some of that money to "socially useful" projects, but the fund has been managed since its beginning in 1950 by 10 banks and neither the company nor the union has any say in investment decisions. On Wednesday, the UAW renewed a more recent proposal, that pension money not be Invested in antiunion companies or companies doing business in South'Africa which have not subscribed, to the principles of non-discrimination drawn up by the Rev. Leon Sullivan, a GM director. "I think it's best to leave them (the banks) completely free In their decision-making," Morris said.

"1 think injecting political considerations into that decision-making process Is unwise." Pensions are so important that the union has not even made a formal wage demand. "We haven't had a serious discussion on wages in days," Fraser said. County's rate of unemployment highest in state Howard County's unemployment rate rose to 12.3 percent in July, the highest in the state, according to the Indiana Employment Security Division. Layoffs combined with inventory shutdowns and vacations to push the rate more than 3 percent higher than the June rate of 9.1 percent. The county's rate was almost dou ble the state's unemployment rate of 6.4 percent for July.

The state rate in June was 5.9 percent. The county had the fourth highest unemployment rate in June. Howard County's rate also will be high in August because more than 4,000 autoworkers were either temporarily or indefinitely laid-off that month. Both the Chrysler Corp. and Delco Electronics Division conducted inventories from July 21 to 28 and laid off about 6,500 people.

Delco also laid off workers temporarily during the entire month because of changes for the 1980 car models. There were 5,800 workers in the county unemployed in July, up 1,600 from the previous month. The county's labor force also increased by 750 from June to July. The Kokpmo Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area which includes Tipton County had an unemployment rate of 11.5 percent in July compared to 8.6 percent in June. Indiana had 170,900 unemployed workers in July compared to 156,300 in June while its labor force dropped 4,300 to 2,650,200.

July unemployment rates for the counties surrounding Howard with June's in parentheses are Carroll 5.8 percent Cass 5.8 percent (4.9); Clinton 5.8 (5.2); Grant 8.9 (6.3); Miami 7.2 (6.6); Tipton 7.5(6.1). Grant County registered the largest jump in the number of unemployed in nonmetropolitan counties as automotive suppliers and the stone-glass-clay industry experienced cutbacks. The state's lowest unemployment rate was registered in Hamilton County with 3 percent in July. Hamilton also is part of the Indianapolis SMS A. What happened in November? August was a busy month for the obstetrics department at St.

Joseph Memorial Hospital. The department was busy because a record number of babies 117 were born, toppling the old record set in July 1978 when 114 births were recorded. Anna Roler, RN, supervisor for the obstetrics ward, noted 62 boys and 55 girls made up the August birth record. She could offer no official explanation for the record- breaking total. She added that the most popular names for girls were Amy and Melissa, while Michael and Travis were the names most often selected for the boys.

Howard Community Hospital reported that births for July were slightly above average, claiming 71 new arrivals at their obstetrics ward. Heather was the most popular name given to baby girls born at Howard Community Hospital, while no clearcut winner in the boys' name category was available. Howard County Councilmen plugged $1,000 wage increases for elected officials and $700 hikes for employees into the proposed 1980 county budget Wednesday, but the figures still are tentative. Councilmen said they will not know if they can fund those amounts until they finish rearranging the figures in all departmental budgets and determine whether there is enough money to fund the salary increases. Before they end their budget sessions, probably tonight, the councilmen have to reduce the proposed $9.7 million budget by about $1.8 million or ask the state to let the county raise more funds.

Under Wednesday's proposals, county police deputies, like the elected officials, would get a $1,000 wage increase to $14,200 next year. The prevailing sentiment was to go higher to but Councilman Richard Miller, R-4th, lobbied for the lower figure. He said the councilmen would be viewed as the good guys "for a change" if, on going through the budget, they found they could go back and raise it to $1,100. If they began with $1,100, they might have to cut it back, appearing to take away the higher wage. Most elected officials were asking for $1,600 wage hikes for themselves and $1,000 increases for their employees.

Sheriff Robert Sargent asked that his deputies be given a $1,500 wage boost, which would have brought them more in line w)th wages received by city poMce- which would have amounted to an 11.3 percent wage increase. Last year, elected officials gained $1,200 salary increases; employees, $800; and county police deputies $1,000. Part-time employees, like the prosecuting attorney's deputies, would receive $350 increases, half the increase of full-time employees. Those whose salaries the county supplements, like the county extension agent and the county prosecutor, also would receive $350, according to the guideline councilmen were using Wednesday. The only workers who could lose money are the four secretaries to the prosecutor's part-time deputies, who are paid $1,631 each this year by the county.

The council approved a total of $7,500 for the secretaries account in 1980, which would only allow $1,500 each if five secretaries are hired. One councilman suggested the reduction of the subsidy would not mean a reduction in the secretaries' pay because the attorneys themselves probably would make up the difference. Councilmen reduced 17 budgets before concluding their session late Wednesday night. By that time, they had sliced $270,121 from the proposed budget, a distance from the $1.8 million goal required to meet the county's frozen levy under the state property tax laws. A proposal from the judges of the circuit and superior courts for a new employee was not approved by the councilmen who generally have beep reluctant to add employees to the county payroll.

The judges had proposed the hiring of an assistant court reporter, who would help the court reporters in the three courts with the workload. Another item in the judges' budgets the pay for special court reporters for circuit, superior and county courts was examined when Councilman Miller noted that money might be saved by hiring a full-time person to fill those already-existing positions as a floater between courts. However, the idea was abandoned when the figures were added and the amount for all special court reporters totaled $4,000. Eight new employees were proposed by Clerk Clifford Lineback, who attended the council meeting Wednesday afternoon to explain his budget. Four of the eight workers had been approved earlier this year three to assist in handling paperwork from the county court and one as a bookkeeper for all the courts but they have not been hired.

Councilmen budgeted funds for next year for the bookkeeper and three other positions, but designated them as workers in a traffic violations bureau which is to be established. The traffic violations bureau is needed because speeding tickets formerly processed through Kokomo City Court are being docketed into county court. The traffic violations bureau is set up for those who want to plead guilty and pay fines without going through court. City court officially goes out of business Dec. 31.

Elmo judges entries a professional clown from the Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros. Circus, judged the clown coloring contest sponsored by the Kokomo Tribune. Ten winners from each of three age groups were chosen with each winner to receive rwp free passes to the circus. Grand prize winners were James Hensler, 8, 3909 W. Defenbaugh Road, and Cqrri Whitney, 6, Kokomo R.R.

4. They will participate as clowns with the circus and their families will be of the circus. Special honorary award winner, the youngest contestant, wai Brian Oaggett, 2, 5411 longbow Pnve. The circus will appear at Maple Crest Plaza today, Friday and Saturday. (Tribune staff photo).