As the City of Clinton begins to prepare for their next fiscal year, the entity charged with bringing economic development to the area is making their yearly request for funding.

Monday night at the Clinton City Council meeting, leaders of the DeWitt County Development Council presented their proposal for funding for 2015-16. According to Clinton Mayor Carolyn Peters, the DCDC is funded by the City of Clinton, Farmer City and the DeWitt County Board, with the city's portion of their funding being $47-thousand.

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The DCDC operates on a limited budget and the Mayor says there are grants they have to support other businesses in the community that cannot be used on their general operating budget. She supports the efforts of the DCDC and feels the city's funding portion is very important to their existence.

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Legislators are warning communities to hold on tight for big changes coming to their funding. While the Mayor would not say cuts to the DCDC are coming, she is holding out hope the cuts to individual communities may not be as great as some perceive.

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While the revenues from the state are remaining consistent, the Mayor points out the cost of supplies and the cost of services to the community are rising. Because of that, she feels it is going to be tough to maintain a balanced budget going forward.