As the saying goes, death and taxes are the only certainties in life. For the Warren County Board of Supervisors, the certainty of taxes is what balances the budget.

Tuesday, the board accepted payment for taxes assessed on real and personal property for the 2016 budget year, effectively approving more than three-quarters of the county’s total budget, according to John Smith, county administrator.

“There are exemptions and other deductions that go into the final numbers I base the budget on, but what was (accepted today) are the raw numbers,” he said.

The county received more than $313 million from taxes assessed on real property, which includes land and real estate within county limits, and more than $126 million in taxes assessed on personal property, which includes taxes on equipment and machinery.

“We were up a little on assessed real property and down a little bit personal this year,” Ben Luckett, county tax assessor, said. “It’s been kind of slow in the commercial and residential side, but we’ve seen some new businesses in the industrial (side). “

With more than half of the county’s income coming from real property, Luckett said, the 2 percent growth from last year, more than $6 million dollars, is important for the county.

“They rely on it,” he said.

Luckett credits the growth to the creation of a new medical complex and new construction in the Ceres Research and Industrial Interplex, while the fall in revenue from personal property tax is likely due to a drop in inventory.

Despite the fall in taxes collected on personal property, Luckett said the revenue had a net gain of more than $6.2 million for this year.

In other news, the board approved ABL Management Inc. out of Baton Rouge, La., as the new food service provider for the Warren County Jail, effective Aug. 6. The previous food company, CBM Food Services, based in South Dakota, will continue to provide food until the new company takes over, providing for a “seamless transition,” said Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace.

County Purchasing Agent Tonga Vincent said the new contract priced each meal at $1.525, an increase from the previous rate of $1.27.

“ABL has agreed to hold the price through December of 2018 if we choose to extend, which means we will have 2.4 years without a price increase since it is a pretty drastic jump from where we are today,” she said.