Pflugerville finance director walks new Finance & Budget Committee through budget calendar, tools and looming $1M exemption hit

Tracy Waldron, Pflugerville City finance director, told the newly convened Finance & Budget (FAB) Committee that the city’s annual budget process begins with council direction and moves through strategic planning, preparation, adoption and execution, and she pointed members to online resources and an interactive budget‑to‑actual tool for deeper review.

Waldron, who led the meeting, said the general fund carries a 25% fund‑balance policy over operating expenditures and that she generally aims to hold slightly more "—27, 28" percent "because rating agencies like to see that we're, you know, we're not just at our policy, but we're a little above it." She said surplus receipts in a strong year are typically directed into fund balance and considered for one‑time capital purchases.

The orientation reviewed key calendar milestones for the fiscal process. Waldron said the proposed budget document will be produced at the end of July so the FAB Committee has roughly 19 days to review it before the committee’s August meeting; she noted council must adopt the budget by Sept. 30. Members were told that the city will add additional review touch points for the capital improvement program (CIP), including planning‑and‑zoning review and an earlier July adoption step so the CIP is vetted before the September budget adoption.

Waldron also warned the committee of near‑term revenue pressure tied to recent state changes affecting personal property exemptions. "We are actually looking at about 1000000 dollars in property tax exemptions that we're gonna lose," she said, and added that staff has already asked the appraisal district for preliminary impact numbers and expects initial reports in April.

Committee members pressed on revenue assumptions and practical review tasks. Jonathan, a committee member, asked how the city estimates sales‑tax revenue and adapts assumptions when collections soften; Waldron described why staff moved an earlier 5% assumption to 3% in a later year to avoid overprojecting receipts. Ronald Cintron, a committee member with an auditing background, and other members expressed interest in close review of the CIP, fees and the upcoming city hall and recreation center projects.

Members also discussed the committee’s role and how it communicates recommendations to council. Waldron said the FAB Committee’s formal role is to review the proposed budget and submit written recommendations to council, and that staff will include any committee recommendations in the meeting summary when the item goes to council. She said fee proposals (for example, rec center user fees and water/wastewater rates) are typically vetted by other boards and workshops in June and July before coming to the committee and council.

Several members asked about informal, between‑meeting collaboration. One member proposed a publicly available online forum similar to what Austin uses; staff cautioned that the Open Meetings Act limits how members may discuss committee business outside posted meetings and recommended consulting the city secretary about permissible formats. Staff offered to invite the city secretary to a future meeting to clarify procedures.

Committee members received guidance about materials and meeting etiquette: staff encouraged members to watch recorded council workshops when they cannot attend live, said PDFs of the budget and the annual comprehensive financial report are available online, and indicated they may provide printed copies on request. The committee also heard that the fiscal 2025 audit draft will go to council for acceptance in late February, per staff timeline notes.

The meeting included two routine formal actions: a motion to approve minutes from the last meeting early in the session and a motion to adjourn at about 12:57 p.m.; staff recorded the motions and seconds but the transcript does not contain a formal roll‑call vote tally.

Next steps: staff will provide preliminary estimates on the appraisal‑district impact of personal‑property exemption changes in April, make the proposed budget available at the end of July, and expect the FAB Committee to prepare formal written recommendations for the August meeting that will be forwarded to council.

Sources: Remarks and exchanges at the Finance & Budget Committee orientation meeting with Tracy Waldron and city finance staff.