At their meeting on Tuesday, the Vilas County Board approved a budget for next year that reflects a tax levy that’s been reduced by $109,000 from last year. The LakelandTimes reports about $2.5 million in short-term borrowing included in the budget is around $250,000 less than last year. Items that the loan will be used for includes the one-time funding of $1.5 million in road construction, tasers for the sheriff’s office, a new roof for the second story of the law enforcement building, replacement of a forestry department vehicle and purchase of a $250,000 patrol truck for the highway department. Finance director Darcy Smith said “Overall, the tax rate has gone down, which is good news for the taxpayers. We were able to increase our budget by $134,000 and we’re balancing the budget right now with the $1.1 million from the general fund.”