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Council adopts third-quarter budget amendment amid warning about $1.4M in expected reimbursements
Summary
Bastrop City Council adopted a midyear amendment to the operating budget after a prolonged discussion about roughly $1.4–$1.6 million in expected reimbursements (FAA and Hurricane Laura) that have not yet cleared and a push from councilmembers for quarterly spending caps.
Bastrop City Council on April 14 adopted Resolution 26-2128, the third amendment to the city’s operating budget for fiscal 2025–26, after a lengthy finance debate about outstanding reimbursements and tighter spending controls.
Councilmembers and staff focused on roughly $1.4–$1.6 million in reimbursements the adopted budget counts on but had not cleared as of the meeting. Budget director Mr. Smith told the council that a recent resubmission produced a $118,000 payment and that larger items — FAA airport reimbursements (about $900,000) and Hurricane Laura reimbursements (roughly $500,000–$700,000, pending invoice reconciliation) — remain in process. “It’s there waiting on us,” Mr. Smith said, describing staff’s assessment after resubmitting paperwork to state and federal agencies.
Councilman James Green urged new reporting and tighter quarterly controls so departments do not exceed spending authorities before revenue is realized. “I think as a recommendation, I think that we should put hard caps on each quarter,” Green said, arguing quarterly limits would reveal trouble spots earlier and prevent last-minute, large-scale cuts.
Budget staff described steps already under way: quarterly reviews, tighter line-item monitoring and a plan to flag any category that exceeds preset thresholds. Staff and council identified two outlier departments — the airport and the marshal’s office — as drivers of current variance and said those lines would be addressed as part of the amendment and future monitoring.
After the discussion the council voted to adopt the third amendment to the operating budget. The administration said the amendment preserves the city’s appropriation authority while documenting known variances and new controls; any decision to reappropriate subsequent unanticipated revenue would follow the public-notice and appropriation rules the council reviewed during the meeting.
What’s next: staff will pursue outstanding reimbursements and provide quarterly reports to the council; the administration said it can provide monthly updates to department heads if requested, and councilmembers signaled they will press for more visible line-item reporting.
