2007-2008 Biennial Budget
City Council members unanimously approved the 2007-2008 mid-biennial budget adjustment Dec. 18. The amended budget preserves and enhances services, and will add 21.25 full-time employees to the City workforce.
The ordinance appropriates funds for additional contractual obligations, transfers and other budget adjustments ??? and appropriation of miscellaneous donations, contributions and/or fees. Highlights of the adjustment include: expansion of the Community Based Services program; funding support for expanding the Nuisance Abatement Program citywide; and $2.25 million of one-time monies allocated for Murray Morgan Bridge remediation. The money budgeted for the Murray Morgan Bridge remediation is for critical emergency response services along the 11th Street corridor.
???Clearly, this budget serves the public???s interest,??? said Mayor Bill Baarsma.
Members of the City Council held a budget workshop Nov. 26 in the City Council Chambers to consider the recommended adjustments to the 2007-2008 Biennial Budget. An archive of the meeting is available in the TV Tacoma Web site at www.tvtacoma.com.
The following documents are question-and-answer files as well as the City Manager's recommended adjustments from the Nov. 6 meeting:
Background on the 2007-2008 Biennial Budget Development (passed by the City Council in 2006)
The 2007-2008 Proposed Budget was developed in accordance with the City???s Financial Policies and philosophies. These policies outline that the budget must:
??? be balanced
??? reserve one-time revenues for one-time expenditures
??? utilize 6- and 10-year forecasts to project budgets
??? maintain a minimum 10% General Fund reserve
??? establish and maintain a contingency fund of $3 million
??? present the capital and operating budgets for action at the same time
In addition to these policies, four budget assumptions influenced the City Manager???s proposed budget for 2007-2008.
1. The budget should not necessitate new taxes
2. The Council would approve the 1% regular property tax levy increase allowed by I-747
3. The EMS levy of $.50 passed by voters in September of 2006 would be approved by the Council and maintained at the full level approved by citizens
4. The budget would include rate increases ranging from 0% to 7.5% for City of Tacoma utilities, including solid waste, wastewater, storm water, and water.
Fiscal discipline and the containment and control of costs were central to the budget???s development. Even so, the proposed budget preserves or enhances services. It does not include any position eliminations or service reductions from the 2005-2006 Budget.
2007-2008 Biennial Budget Background Information
2007-08 Proposed Operating Budget Fact Sheet
Preliminary 2007-2008 Budget Proposal
2007-2008 Proposed Budget PowerPoint Presentation
Responses to questions raised during the Oct. 31 Proposed Budget Presentation
Revised responses to questions raised during the budget presentation
Department Presentations
Follow up to questions raised during the Nov.15, Nov. 2, and Oct. 31 budget workshops
Responses to questions raised during the Nov. 30 budget workshop
City Council's proposed budget amendment to the amendment (Dec. 5)
If you have a comment or suggestion you would like to share regarding the 2007-2008 Biennial Budget, e-mail it here.
*Budget documents are provided in Acrobat Reader .PDF format. If you do not already have Acrobat Reader 7.0, please take time to download it now. Please use your browser buttons to navigate the documents.
 |