Up in the sky: It's a bird, it's a plane -- NO...it's Super Controller "Garry" swooping in to save the day. Yell right!
After the Township Assessor's and County Auditor's department calculated New Albany's assessed property value and submitted it to the Department of Local Government Finance, the state ordered the city to reduce the budget it approved last fall, a document based in part on projections of net worth.
City Controller Kay Garry stated: New Albany has operated this year on a $16,414,975 general fund. The state ordered a $589,095 cut at 3.6 percent to $15,825,880.
Source: New Albany Tribune: June 14, 2007
The 2007 City of New Albany Budget Estimate TO SPEND is:
General Fund......$16,414,975
2007 Other Funds Listed:
Parks Oper...........$1,786,477
Police Pension......$2,546,070
Fire Pension.........$2,588,274
Reserve ITAB.......$150,000
Parks Cum.Cap....$330,000
M.V.H..................$1,377,729
L.R.S...................$450,000
C.C.I....................$400,000
Riverboat............$700,000
Redevelopment...$1,416,487
E.D.I.T................$1,420,274
Source: Department of Local Government Finance
Freedom of Speech would like to ask:
Why won't Controller Garry suggest that the $589,095 cuts on the general fund be made rather than dipping into the Rainy Day Fund?
We have to do everything we can to hold down our property taxes. When those new higher tax bills arrive in the mail, there will be alot of angry taxpayers.
Watch your mailbox! Our tax bills may be mailed out soon.
Garry's first option was to use the Rainy-Day Fund and the River Boat Fund to cover cost. The 2nd option would be to make no cuts to a budget Garry called "bare-bones" and would use solely Rainy Day Fund money to plug the general fund gap.
Source: New Albany Tribune - July 20, 2007
So let's look at these two options:
General Fund 2007 Budget cuts.Ordered to remove $589,095.00 from 2007 Budget.
OPTION 1
$100,000 - Election Expenses out of Riverboat instead of General Fund
$135,000 - Rent on Building out of Riverboat instead of General Fund
Garry stated:I have been through all budgets in General Fund. Following are only suggestions:
Mayor's Office - remove $2,000 ($1,000 out of travel and $1,000 out of Training)
Controller's Office - remove $3,000 from Computer Consultant
Clerk's Office - cannot see any cuts
Council - possibly $5,000 from Contractual
Attorney - Possibly $5,000 out of Contractual (legal)
Board of Works - This year we can move $5,000 out of Unemployment
Animal Shelter - $15,000 out of Salaries - has been working 1/2 year without one employee. If hired before end of year would not use all of appropriations.
Weights and Measures - No cuts
Building Commission - $5,000 out of Salaries
Plan Commission - $5,000 out of Salaries
Police - $1,000 out of contract legal, $1,000 out of travel (can't see cutting anymore because shortfall in insurance and will need to do transfers from other lines)
Fire - No cuts
Communication - No cuts
Police Merit - No cuts
Fairview and West Haven - No cuts
$589,095
-100,000
-135,000
-47,000
$307,095 remaining to be cut
Move $307,095 remain expenses of the Board of Works into the Rainy Day Fund. There is $1.9 million in Rainy Day Fund. The council would have to do additional appropriation to use the $307,095 as none of the $1.9 is appropriated.
General Fund 2007 Cuts
OPTION 2
No cuts in current budget
Move $455,419 out of Board of Works Budget into Rainy Day Fund.
Move total Controller's Budget $133,676 from General Fund into Rainy Day Fund
This is the $589,095 ordered cuts
Source: Kay Garry City Controller
Freedom of Speech believes for every problem there is a solution!
We have been crunching numbers with our Economic Advisor for over a week now.
Freedom of Speech came up with our own option:
2007 Budgets by Departments:
Mayors Office...................$111,050
Controller Office..............$133,676
City Clerks Office..............$76,273
Council............................$146,815
City Attorney....................$112,115
Board of Works................$974,244
Animal Shelter.................$404,977
Weight & Measure............$34,828
Plan Commission.............$244,573
Building Commissioner....$205,615
Police Department...........$6,166,511
Police Merit.....................$31,993
Fire Department..............$6,924,734
Communications.............$619,124
Fairview..........................$184,888
West Haven.....................$43,541
2007 Department cuts:
Since our mayor is suppose to lead by example. Here's how our cuts work:
Mayor's Office: cut 5% of all salaries and cut 10% off Office Budget.Return all board salaries.
Controller Office: cut 5% of all salaries and cut 10% off Office Budget.
City Clerks Office: cut 5% of all salaries and cut 10% off Office Budget. Return money that city clerk is being paid for sitting on a board during working hours. We believe this is called double dipping!
Council: Cut 10% off council's Budget.
City Attorney: Cut 10% of your salary and cut 10% off Department Budget. Give 20% of commission back to the citizens that you collected on our Sewer Bonds and Scribner Bonds.
Board of Works: cut 10% of all salaries and cut 20% off entire Department Budget.
Animal Shelter: No cuts
Weights & Measure: No cuts
Plan Commission: cut 10% of all salaries and cut 15% off entire Department budget.
Building Commissioner: cut 5% of all salaries and cut 10% off Department Budget.
Police Department: cut 10% off entire Department budget.
Police Merit: No cuts
Fire Department: cut 10% off entire Department budget.
Communications: cut 5% off entire Department budget.
Fairview: cut 5% off entire Department budget.
West Haven: No cuts
Freedom of Speech would like to say: Our current administration has known for over 3 1/2 years, extreme growth in healthcare costs and pension obligations combined with contractually mandated salary increases are forcing deep cuts in other parts of the budget. The growth in healthcare, pensions, contractual obligations and fuel continues to exceed the budget growth allowed by state law and, if not dealt with, will soon force cuts in vital services like police and fire protection (which represent 82.7% of our budget).
The council now can decide to further cut or add to the budget but it is our hope they will provide us taxpayers with much needed relief.
The miscellaneous spending "is unfortunately symbolic of the attitude of some council members, that they really have no intention of changing the way they operate, and have no appreciation for the crisis the city is under, and are not responding to it."
"They don't get it. They simply don't understand what it means to be frugal."
A successful group of people are ones who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at him and her.
~David Brinkley
