City Departments Face Substantial, Negative Impacts Without an Override

The city’s typical annual budget timeline calls for me to send a complete budget proposal to the Board of Aldermen in May. While this year will be no exception, we have been asked for information from elected officials and residents about what city services would have to be eliminated or reduced in the event of a failed tax override in April. Outlined further in this article are options to be considered in that event.
In the absence of new revenue from a successful override, the city faces a total shortfall of close to $3 million (this includes both school and city departments).  Currently, the School Department faces a projected shortfall of $1.6 million to $2 million. The City faces an additional shortfall of $600k-$1 million. These are ranges because certain cost drivers remain unknown and out of our control and we will not know the exact amounts until closer to May (e.g. the amount of special education cost increases, vocational school assessments, health insurance, etc.).

This shortfall does not take into account addressing our significant increase in student enrollment by adding teachers, classroom space, materials or supplies.

Contributing to our shortfall this year is a significant increase in health insurance rates, which stayed flat last year, as well as proposed state aid that is less than half of what we received last fiscal year. As school enrollment numbers continue to increase, we are also mindful that the state’s required minimum contribution to our local public schools may increase as well. If we are unable to meet this minimum with the current proposals, we will have to cut from additional city departments until the minimum spending limit is met.

Please note that these proposed options are in addition to the options recently proposed by the School Department to address their department’s significant shortfall. 

It should be noted that the total of these proposed non-school options is $881,000. In the event of a failed override, we will have to cut some, all, or even more than the options outlined. This will be unavoidable, as I have a responsibility to send a balanced budget to the Board of Aldermen.