BENTON COUNTY — The success of a petition drive calling for a vote on a rural ambulance fee left Benton County officials scrambling on Dec. 3 to balance the 2014 budget.

The Quorum Court's Finance Committee removed about $1.1 million in revenue from an $85 fee on rural households along with $950,000 in anticipated ambulance service expenses from the 2014 budget until the fate of the proposed fee is determined.

The Quorum Court approved, in September, creating an emergency medical service district and imposing an annual $85 fee on residents outside incorporated cities and towns not included in the Northeast Benton County Emergency Medical Service District. The fee would be included on property tax statements.

Theresa Pockrus, a Fayetteville attorney and former Benton County collector, helped organize a petition drive calling for a referendum on the fee and the related emergency medical services district.

Pockrus and supporters turned in petitions to the Benton County Clerk's Office on Dec. 2, and the clerk's office verified the petitions had enough signatures late Dec. 3. According to information from the Clerk's Office, 1,940 signatures had been verified as being from voters living in the proposed district. Another 368 were rejected and 135 were pending.

George Spence, county attorney, told the justices of the peace the district will not take effect until after an election is held. Spence said his research indicates the county judge or quorum court can call for a special election even though the petitions asked the measure be voted on at the November 2014 general election.

Spence said if the county can hold a vote in March, the earliest it could be set, it may be possible to have the fee placed on property tax bills as planned if voters approve the plan.

"It looks like we can collect the fee next year if we have the referendum and the fee is upheld," Spence told the justices of the peace.

Benton County's elected officials were meeting Dec. 3 to finish the 2014 budget.

Justices of the peace voted to accept Sheriff Kelley Cradduck's proposal to increase the 2014 revenue from jail fees by $400,000 to help make up a shortfall. Sarah Daniels, county comptroller, said the deficit before the meeting stood at $240,266 after calculating expected revenue through the end of November.

At their last meeting, the justices of the peace asked Cradduck and County Judge Bob Clinard to cut their budgets by $200,000 each or face the prospect of the committee making cuts that could include money allocated for employee raises.

By taking the ambulance revenue and expenses out of the budget, along with accepting Cradduck's revised revenue projection, the justices of the peace were left with a $155,000 surplus.

Benton County officials already agreed to pay the seven municipal fire departments providing ambulance service in the proposed district about $942,000 for ambulance service in 2014. With the revenue uncertain, pending the referendum, the justices of the peace voted to allocate the $155,000 surplus and take $81,000 from reserve to make monthly payments to the cities for the first three months of 2014.

Daniels told the justices of the peace she expects the county will have at least $1 million returned from 2013 to work with next year. Tom Allen, justice of the peace for District 4 and chairman of the Finance Committee, said that money could be used for capital items if the ambulance fee is upheld or go to ambulance service costs if the fee is rejected.

"That could be at the top of the list for turnback," Allen said.