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Kerrville reports revenues ahead of estimate; property-tax collections and water fund noted in Feb. 25 briefing
Summary
City staff told the Kerrville City Council on Feb. 25 that general-fund revenues are roughly $290,000 ahead of estimates through January while expenses are about $850,000 below budget, and that property-tax collections are tracking slightly above five-year averages.
City staff briefed the Kerrville City Council on Feb. 25 about current-year finances, property-tax collections and the TERS fund, and outlined the budget process and next steps for the audit and budget book.
Julie Behrend, presenting financial reports, said general-fund revenues were about $290,000 higher than budgeted through January and that property-tax collections were about 82% collected through January compared with a five-year average of 79%. On the expense side, she said expenditures were roughly $850,000 under current budget estimates, but cautioned that timing for large maintenance items and street contracts can shift those numbers as the year continues.
Behrend said the city is continuing to model revenues using a five-year history and that sales-tax revenues remain healthy overall despite a recent month-by-month slowdown; one month showed a 21% increase driven by a large audit payment the city will treat as an anomaly for budgeting. She also described water-fund performance: revenues were tracking slightly better than estimates compared with fiscal 2024, but the city remains in Stage 3 (conservation measures) and staff emphasized modeling changes, including reduced reliance on irrigation, when setting rates.
On transfers and fund accounting, staff explained differences between general-fund and water-fund transfers, noting that water revenues are used to pay related debt and can make transfer lines look large even though they represent interfund accounting.
Behrend reviewed the annual TERS (downtown/transportation/streets-related) financial update presented Dec. 11 to the TERS board. Fiscal-year 2024 remains listed as estimated while the audit completes; staff reported an ending TERS fund balance of about $641,000 for FY24 and projected nearly $1 million at the end of FY25 with no currently committed projects. To date TERS has funded about $442,000 in projects such as ADA-compliant crosswalks and downtown updates, and staff noted a $92,500 expense in 2023 related to intersection improvements funded in part by block-grant matching.
Behrend outlined the budget calendar, noting internal leadership presentations for department budgets and an audit presentation to council in March. The city will phase in a new budgeting tool after contract finalization and will use a QR code and online distribution for the final budget book to improve public transparency.
Why it matters: Staff reported revenues and expenses are tracking close to estimates overall but flagged timing and major maintenance items as variables. The TERS fund balance grew and could fund future downtown projects if the board chooses to commit funds.
