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McAlester finance director says October report shows a roughly $283,000 general‑fund shortfall; reserves below state target
Summary
At a regular council meeting, finance staff reported October revenues and expenditures and said the general fund showed an approximate $283,000 deficit after transfers; staff noted sales‑tax dependence, TIF payments, and that the city's emergency reserve remains below the state‑mandated 10% target.
Sherry Swift reported to the McAlester City Council that October financials show the general fund collected about $5.5 million — roughly 31.34% of the annual budget — while expenditures totaled roughly $5.6 million (30.88%), leaving “a deficit of approximately $283,000 as of right now,” Swift said.
The presentation summarized sales‑tax allocations and other major elements of the month's revenue picture. Swift said the city's total sales‑tax rate is 10%, which the report breaks down into state and local allocations, and that October sales tax receipts for the city were below projections. She said the city received about $1.4 million in sales tax for October and $6.4 million year to date.
Swift walked the council through dedicated allocations: a 2% general‑fund share, a TIF allocation (monthly TIF payment shown as $104,000 for October), smaller dedicated shares to the public schools and a cancer center (0.125% each), infrastructure, bond payments and a debt service line. She noted that some dedicated revenues — for example early‑childhood safe rooms tied to past agreements — have defined term limits.
On the utilities side, Swift said McAlester Public Works Authority (MPWA) generated about $4.18 million in October (about 32.57% of its annual budget) and reported a net increase for MPWA of $524,000 after transfers. The treasurer's report showed total cash balances of about $23 million and more than $10 million in operating accounts, but Swift said the city's emergency reserve remains below the state‑mandated 10% of the operating budget.
Councilors asked whether the revenue shortfalls are seasonal; Swift and others said October is often lower and that projections expect improvement over the next two months as holiday sales arrive. Staff also noted a spreadsheet formula error affecting a TIF payment column that will be corrected for the next report.
No formal action was taken on the report; staff will present a corrected report next month and continue monitoring sales‑tax collections and TIF payment timing.
