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Chair outlines plan to finalize budget in June; short-term rental fee, IT support and staffing flagged
Summary
At a Finance Committee meeting, the Chair said the council is in its penultimate budget session and aims to finalize the budget in June, highlighting a possible fee on short-term rentals, IT capacity proposals using fellowships, and a $120,000 workers' compensation projection.
The Chair told the Finance Committee the group is entering its penultimate budget meeting and is aiming for a June finalization, saying the council will take “a temperature set so we can see where we're at in the budget.”
The Chair singled out several items likely to affect the final package: a proposed fee on short-term rentals intended “to cover at least the cost of the system,” outstanding emerald ash borer responses, and the need to prioritize IT requests that department heads scaled back to accommodate pressing technology needs. The Chair also noted a handful of comparatively small variances in the $20,000–$50,000 range and one larger projection—about $120,000—related to next year’s workers’ compensation benefits.
Members discussed alternatives to hiring additional full-time staff for IT needs. The Chair proposed testing a fellowship or internship partnership with local universities to provide short-term capacity while offering candidates a pathway to permanent roles, citing examples of municipal internship models and saying such positions would not replace full-time hires but could “test drive the candidate.” Councilors agreed the fellowship language should clarify interns or fellows are not taking permanent jobs.
The Chair said the council has reimplemented a policy requiring departments to appear before the council for reallocations over $10,000, and staff will continue reviewing departments that may be slightly over or under budget as part of the year-end closeout. He emphasized improving cash-management practices to reduce reliance on tax anticipation notes and noted staff have been conducting a “deep dive” into the city’s burn rate for the remainder of the fiscal year.
The Chair said the goal is to complete final passes at the coming meetings and to bring any departmental reallocation requests that exceed the established threshold back to council in June, with smaller closeout adjustments handled in July or August.
