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Finance committee previews streamlined 2026 budget and plans shift to VIP system; scheduling for council workshop remained unclear
Summary
At a Pataskala City finance committee meeting, staff presented a re‑formatted, preliminary 2026 budget and described plans to move budget entry into the municipality's VIP software. Committee members discussed workshop and presentation dates but did not resolve conflicting draft schedules.
At a finance committee meeting, finance staff presented a re‑formatted draft of the Pataskala City 2026 budget and outlined plans to move departmental budget entry into the city's VIP financial software, while members expressed confusion about which draft schedule sets the council workshop date.
The finance staff member identified as Jen, speaking for the finance office, said the 2026 budget “has been prepared using a format that differs from previous years for a more concise overview” and described the document as “a very, very rough draft.” Jen said the department plans to begin “integrating the budget into the VIP system next year” so that department heads can enter numbers directly into the software. “That way, if anything like, if somebody messed up a number, they're only messing up their number. They're not messing up the whole formula,” she said.
Committee members pressed for details on timing and the form of the materials they will receive. Jen said the materials this year will be a shorter “executive summary” that highlights carryover and projections rather than the large multi‑page packet members have previously received. She said staff are finalizing revenue inputs and five‑year projections and planned to meet with department heads “maybe Wednesday and Thursday” of the following week to complete projections ahead of the first council work session.
The committee also discussed two draft budget schedules that showed different dates for the council planning workshop and subsequent presentation materials. One draft indicated a council planning workshop on Sept. 24; another indicated Sept. 29 (and a November/October sequence for first readings and presentations). Committee members did not resolve the discrepancy during the meeting. One member asked the chair to reiterate the approved schedule to the full city council after the meeting.
Staff described how the VIP system will be used. Jen said department heads will have access only to their department’s portion of the budget so errors do not cascade across departments, and that the VIP “Analytical” module has not been updated recently and will need attention before broader use. Jamie (a staff member referenced in the discussion) was identified as having manually populated prior year figures into VIP; Jen said future workflows will allow departments to input directly.
Committee members voiced support for moving away from Excel worksheets to reduce the risk of formula errors. One committee member said the VIP output will look “a little bit different than what you guys are used to seeing,” and the committee discussed the need to provide members the right amount of information — carryover percentages and projections — rather than the full, detailed packet.
The meeting concluded with a motion to adjourn. A committee member moved to adjourn and another seconded; no formal vote tally was recorded in the transcript.
The committee did not take any legislative votes on budget adoption or amendments at this meeting; the discussion focused on formatting, timeline and process for preparing materials to present to the full council.
