Our Budget Director
Ed Van Eenoo presented the 2008-2009 budget next. (Video part 1)
They feel it is a good
idea to remove employees and departments from the General Fund. The idea seems
to be to get each of these departments to pay for themselves. In the case of
development services this will mean further increases in fees, which people are
already complaining about. (Video
of patio contractor), (Video
of developer West) Development should pay for itself, but all of these fees
are making housing even more expensive and not solving the problem of anything
that is built requiring services from the city, which the city can not afford
to provide.
The Development
Services Department will start with a deficit. There is a fee subsidy (for hot
water heaters) funded by the council that the General Fund will have to pay. This
graph shows that as well as the large amount of overhead to be charged to the
department. It also shows the General Fund crediting all development fee
revenue to Development Services Fund. Why
Development Expenses are shown as revenue to the General Fund is
not at all clear.
Development Revenues
This slide shows how the total budget of $150.6 million is spent.
81% is spent on salaries and benefits.
(Video Part 2 of Mr. Van Eenoo's
presentation)
Last year this funding ratio started going down for the first time.
Obviously this is a reduction in services to residents and an increase in
stress to employees as
fewer people strive to do more work.
(Video Part 3 of Mr.
Van Eenoo's presentation)
Personnel Services $120.6 Million
The circle graph shows how the 81% of the budget going to personnel
expenses is spent. PERS is retirement. Flex is the fund used to pay for medical
expenses. Salaries are shown at 60% on this graft. Numbers are in millions of
dollars.
Supplies and services
are 11%. 3% of budget is utilities.
In 2013 the
pension obligation bond will be paid off,
General Fund $150.6 million if the city doesn't refinance it
before then to get cash.
(Video part 4 of
presentation)
History of Recent Budget
Cuts
