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WPCNR Common Council Chronicle-Examiner. By John F. Bailey. February 18, 2004: Budget Director Anne Reasoner presented $8.5 Million in key expenditure increases and a $3.8 Million revenue shortfall, saying the city faces a minimum $12.3 Million rise in expenditures as it begins work on its 2004-05 fiscal budget.
BUDGET DIRECTOR’S GOOD NEWS: Anne Reasoner at the Common Council Work Session Wednesday. She said that the sales tax revenue is climbing and is $400,000 above budget going into the last five months of fiscal 2003-04. The city is budgeted to receive $35 Million in sales taxes this year, and if sales tax levels for February to June match last year’s figures the city will go over by $400,000. Ms. Reasoner said it was “too early to call” what the total city budget would be. Photo by WPCNR News.
Automatic salary increases (averaging 4%) were not included in Ms. Reasoner’s report, Benjamin Boykin pointed out.
Unknown Factors Contributing Not Considered. “Too Early”
Salaries alone, according to a rough look by WPCNR could add an additional $3 Million to the increase in expenses. The city budget based on current expected expenditures could rise to $120 Million, from its current level of $104 Million (based on the 2003-04 wages).
However Ms. Reasoner told the Council it was too early to tell what the actual total city budget would be because requests for budgets had just been sent out to departments, with the exhortation to cut.
Salaries Not Discussed.
Ms. Reasoner last night put the budget gap at $12,314,173 at this time. However, as Councilman Boykin pointed out, If you throw in the salary increases and take a 4% increase on this year’s salaries it is more.
Take the $54,727,786 figure for 2003-04 wages and salaries, take 4% of it and you come up with $2 Million plus in salary raises, plus another $1MM for hiring of 10 more police, that have to come out of the city budget next year, that’s by rough estimate, $3 Million more.
The salary piece would appear to bring the projected increase WPCNR figures to $15,314,173. Add that to this years budget of $104 Million-plus and you get $120 Million. There is also the possibility that settlements will be reached with the Civil Service Employees Association union, currently without a contract, where a settlement may add to the salary increase that will have to be paid in 2004-05.
Of course, this speculation is premature.
The Fiscal Triangle. Park, Theatre, Assessments.
The budget may be impacted by perhaps several millions beyond $120 Million if you add in unknown expenditures for possible new park construction (at New York Presbyterian Hospital).
The city may also have to add the as yet, unknown extent of what the city investment in the community theatre is on an annual basis. (2003-2004 is the first year of operation of the White Plains Performing Arts Center.) The city is responsible for an undisclosed, amount of expenses in addition to the $100,000 a year managing fee paid to the theatre managers, related to the operation of the White Plains Performing Arts Center according to its contract with the operators.
The City School District has gone on record as saying that Assessor Eydie McCarthy expects assessments to go down which could further impact the budget.
Thank Heaven for the Parking Authority
Mayor Joseph Delfino indicated last night he would ask the Parking Authority to help bridge the acknowledged $12,314,173 gap with increases in parking fees. He did not name a figure he expected. The details, Mayor Delfino said, would be presented to the Common Council as the budget process continued.
Cash Registers Ringing
Reasoner’s news about the sales tax pierced the gloom that hung over the Conference Room table.
She announced sales tax receipts through January were running $400,000 above budget, and expected to make this year’s budget if sales tax revenues in February through June match last year’s numbers.
The $400,000 increase was being seen she said, despite a very bad January, and expected them to rise with more revenues coming on in from the new projects. She said a great December helped giving the city a 11.88% increase year to year.
On Wednesday she had just received sales tax figures for January from the state which were down. She attributed that to the cold weather and snow storms (there were two, causing two snow days). Sales Tax Receipts were off 8.19% in January.
The holiday season of December with the new stores, Fortunoff, Target and Circuit City coming on stream, generated a 29.45% increase over the previous December, her report to the Mayor indicated.
Reasoner said, predicticting the next five months on sales tax, that she felt “I think we’re going to do fine.”
Expenditure Icebergs
Reasoner said the four major items contributing to the jack in 2004-05 expenses were:
- A $5,409,854 increase in the city’s contribution to the state pension fund. (up 220.68%). Mayor Joseph Delfino when queried about the New York State Comptroller Allan Havesi adjusting the pension fund needs according to recent increases in the market, said “he isn’t planning to do that.”
The Mayor said he will be attending the New York State Conference of Mayors over the weekend in Albany in which they are going to lobby the state for relief from the onerous burden caused by the previous Comptroller Carl McCall investing state pension funds in the stock market and suffering losses.
There is a possibility the comptroller’s office and the legislature and the Governor will defer or ease this burden in some way.
- A $1,463,987 increase in Health Insurance (up 13.36%).
- A $551,738 increase in the Self-Insurance Fund (up 45.98%)
- A $1,085,500 increase in funding new rolling stock. An increase of 100% from last year when no money was budgeted for rolling stock.
Revenue Shortfall.
Reasoner noted four revenue areas of concern
1. Fund Balance: She reported that the City Charter prevents her from appropriating any more than $5,600,000 of the city fund balance to help balance the budget, creating A shortfall of $2.6 Million on the revenue side. In previous years, 2001-02, and 02-03, and 02-03, the city used $8.5 Million of the fund balance to help balance the budget.
2. Parking Fines from Public Safety. In this category she estimates will be $1.5 Million in 2004-05, up $300, 000, and increase of 25%.
3. Parking Fines: Presently plans for raising fees for parking permits, the hours of parking and the rates for parking meters are being considered by the Parking Authority to bring the city more revenue to bridge the expenditure gap.
- Sales Tax: Reasoner said she could only budget by law what the city collected last year, and she is anticipating being able to budget $37 Million in sales tax for the 2004-05 fiscal year, based on better numbers in the last five months February to June, 2004.
Reasoner told WPCNR she did not know when the Payment In Lieu of Taxes from the City Center project would kick in to the city revenue stream. The City School District reported last week that according to City Accessor Eydie McCarthy, that payment of $2.5 Million a year for 15 years, would not be coming on line until 2005-06.
The Council to the Rescue
Councilman Glen Hockley weighed right in, saying “We need to find creative ways of raising money,”calling for increasing fees a numerous city permits and fines and services,” and said he would be drawing up a list of possibilities, in addition to parking fines.
Councilman Benjamin Boykin commented “We’ve all been fiscally responsible here.”
Mayor Delfino said, “White Plains has been the most prudent responsible community in Westchester County. There’s never been a time when we weren’t creative.”
Some ideas were ventured, such as bonding for whatever the budget gap eventually turns out to be. However, Ms. Reasoner pointed out that the city has already bonded for $6.8 Million for the Shapham Parking project, and you would need another $5.6 Million in revenues to balance that.
