Saint Helena staff present $6 million–$10 million structural deficit estimate; council asks finance committee to vet options and prepare for potential ballot

City staff told the Saint Helena City Council on March 11 that the city faces a structural fiscal gap that, depending on assumptions and whether capital and potential VLF impacts are included, ranges from roughly $6 million to $10 million per year.

City Manager Camillo and administrative staff presented a multi-part analysis: base staffing costs (about $17 million), the cost to add 4.5 positions (roughly $685,000), bringing compensation to market-median levels (additional staffing adjustments of roughly $700,000), capital asset replacement needs (roughly $1 million) and allowances for long-term liabilities (about $500,000). Staff combined those items with the city—s current operating deficit figure of $3.2 million and estimated a base structural deficit in the $6 million range; the number increases to as much as about $10 million if general-fund capital-improvement program needs and a potential VLF shortfall are included.

Camillo described the work as a starting point for discussion rather than a final plan. He said staff wants the finance committee and the Water and Wastewater Advisory Committee to review assumptions and refine the calculations. The presentation included staffing and vacancy details (staff said the current vacancy rate had fallen to about 8.7%) and noted that 60% of current staff have under five years of tenure with the city, a factor staff tied to turnover and productivity impacts.

Key figures and context staff provided to the council: current staffing cost ~ $17,000,000; adding 4.5 positions plus compensation adjustments raises recurring staffing-related costs by roughly $1.3 million; general-fund capital needs in the report totaled an estimated $128 million spread across multiple projects (staff cited about $68 million of unfunded items after counting available funds), which staff calculated as a roughly $3.4 million annualized general-fund CIP need over 20 years; staff did not include VLF scenarios as a foregone conclusion but described the county presentation on that risk.

Council and public reaction: Councilmembers asked staff to bring the analysis to the finance committee for detailed vetting; multiple public commenters — including former finance-committee participants — asked that the committee be engaged quickly and said they wanted more time to review the materials. City staff said they would seek finance-committee input and aimed to return with recommendations in April; staff noted other schedule items in the budget process (first draft of the two-year budget targeted for May 13, adoption currently scheduled for June 8). Camillo and council members also discussed the procedural steps required if a November ballot measure were to be pursued (including potential declaration of fiscal emergency and related deadlines).

Ending: Council directed staff to work with the finance committee and bring back refined numbers and proposed revenue/reform options; staff said it would also prepare tentative options for a ballot measure timeline if the finance committee confirms a need.