Memorandum
City of Lawrence
City Manager’s Office
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Date: |
July 27, 2010– revised 07/26/10 |
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To: |
David Corliss, City Manager |
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From: |
Casey Toomay, Budget Manager |
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CC: |
Cynthia Wagner, Assistant City Manager Diane Stoddard, Assistant City Manager Jonathan Douglass, Assistant to the City Manager / City Clerk |
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RE: |
City Commission Items Related to Adoption of the 2011 Budget |
Please place the following items on the City Commission agenda for consideration at their July 27, 2010 meeting:
Per action taken at the July 6, 2010 City Commission meeting, notice of a public hearing to be conducted on July 27, 2010 was published on July 16, 2010 in the Lawrence Journal World. The purpose of the hearing is to answer and hear questions of taxpayers relating to the City Manager’s recommended budget. The publication of the notice of budget hearing and the accompanying budget summary establish the maximum limits of the 2011 budget. Therefore, the City Commission may make changes, as appropriate, subsequent to the public hearing that would involve lowering, but not raising the expenditure levels of the published budget summary.
Per direction of the City Commission, the following adjustments have been made to the City Manager’s recommended budget.
· Bond and Interest Fund. Expenditures projected for 2010 and recommended for 2011 have been adjusted to include the debt service payments from non-budgeted funds. The transfer budgeted to achieve the statutory limit on budgeted fund balance has also been reduced. The result is a reduction from the City Manager’s Recommended Budget of $1.6 million.
· Water and Wastewater Fund. Budgeted revenues in the Water and Wastewater fund have been adjusted to reflect no rate increase in water or sewer rates for 2011. Wholesale rates are still being determined and will be established by separate ordinance, to be considered by the City Commission later this summer. Expenditures have been adjusted as follows:
§ Non-bonded construction transfer. Without a rate increase, it was necessary to reduce the City Manager’s Recommended Budget for the transfer to non-bonded cash construction by $500,000;
§ Transfer for fund balance. In order to stay below the statutory limit on budgeted fund balance, this transfer, which will not actually be made, was increased by $250,000 over the City Manager’s Recommended Budget;
§ Debt Service. Without a rate increase, no new debt will be issued for capital projects in 2011, reducing debt service by almost $783,503 from the City Manager’s Recommended Budget.
The result is a total decrease from the City Manager’s Recommended Budget of $1,033,209.
A revised fund summary (revised 07/26/10) is attached, showing the revised 2011 budget. The summary also shows Scenario 4, which projected 2011 expenditures at 98% of 2011 budget and uses the saving from operation and maintenance expenses (i.e. chemicals, fuel, energy, etc.) to increase the transfer to fund non-bonded construction. Should revenues fail to meet budget or operation and maintenance costs increase dramatically, the amount of the transfer to fund non-bonded construction will be reduced accordingly. Alternatively, any savings from operations and maintenance will be used to increase the transfer to non-bonded construction in late 2011.
A revised CIP for Scenario 4 (revised 07/26/10) is also attached. The 2010 CIP remains unchanged with the 2011 CIP increased to reflect the increase in the transfer to fund non-bonded construction.
· Solid Waste Fund. Revenues in the Solid Waste Fund have been adjusted to reflect a five percent (5%) increase in rates for 2011. The attached memo (revised 07/26/10) explains the reductions made to the City Manager’s Recommended Budget in order to limit the rate increase for solid waste disposal for 2011 to $0.70 monthly per residential customer. A revised fund summary (revised 07/26/10) is also attached.
Attached are comparisons of residential and commercial solid waste rates and land fill rates.
The remainder of the budget, as shown on the attached fund summaries (revised 07/26/10), will be as previously posted.
Commission Action: Conduct public hearing for 2011 proposed budget. Approve 2011 City of Lawrence budget, if appropriate, by adopting Ordinance No. 8551 (revised 07/26/10) on first reading.
Solid Waste Service Rates Ordinance
The attached ordinance establishes the rates for solid waste disposal for 2011. In order for the new rates to be effective on the first billing cycle for 2011, the ordinance must become effective no later than November 15, 2010.
Commission Action: Adopt on first reading, Ordinance No. 8546, effective November 15, 2010, if appropriate.