Mokena Fire District Approves Annual Budget After Public Hearing

The Mokena Fire Protection District Board of Trustees unanimously adopted its budget and appropriation ordinance for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, finalizing the district’s spending plan after a formal public hearing during its June 10 meeting.

The approval of Ordinance No. 2025-3 sets the legal appropriation for the district for the fiscal year that began June 1, 2025, and ends May 31, 2026.

Accountant James Howard, attending the meeting via Zoom, presented the tentative budget to the board. District attorney John Motylinski was also present to advise the board on the legal requirements of the process.

Trustee Robert Hennessy motioned to open the public hearing at 7:34 p.m., which was seconded by Trustee Craig Warning and approved by a unanimous roll call vote. No members of the public were in attendance to comment on the budget.

With no public input, the board immediately moved to close the hearing. Immediately after, Warning made a motion, seconded by Trustee Ken Blank, to formally adopt the budget ordinance. The motion passed with a unanimous roll call vote from Trustees Haas, Blank, Hennessy, Burkhardt, and Warning.

The newly adopted budget includes a previously discussed $15,000 line item for firefighter cancer screenings, a health and safety benefit added by Fire Chief Joe Cirelli to support early detection for personnel.

Following the vote, the board signed the necessary documents. The district’s legal counsel, Ottosen Dinolfo Hasenbalg & Castaldo, Ltd., will now publish and file the ordinance with Will and Cook counties as required by law.

In other financial news, Chief Cirelli reported that the district’s annual audit is “well underway.” He told the board the process will take a few months and that the auditor is expected to present the final report in the fall. The board also approved the payment of monthly bills totaling $165,680.52.