Fort Thomas council holds first reading of budget ordinances as residents press for clearer accounting

Mayor Andy Elson opened the June 1 meeting and led the council through first readings of ordinances amending the current and next fiscal-year budgets and an update to the city’s pay classification plan.

At public comment, resident John Sarah pressed the council for greater transparency in budget presentation. Quoting a principle he said the council should adopt, he said: "Honesty is answering truthfully when asked, but transparency is choosing to share the truth before anyone even wonders." He noted that the packet listed $5,169,720 for employee benefits and a separate "other benefits" line of $175,750 and asked what items are included in that supplemental line.

Council members and staff explained that some of the amounts are reallocations and improved expense-tracking. Staff identified employee-assistance programs (EAP), flexible spending and a 3% deferred-comp match as components of the ‘‘other benefits’’ line and said a new recreation director has begun more detailed tracking of community-center operating expenses. On the community-center ledger, speakers pointed out linen service rising from $11,200 to $30,000 and total operating expense moving from roughly $62,000 to about $135,250; staff said some increases reflect moving utilities and other items into the correct departmental lines rather than new spending.

Residents also asked whether financial materials could be published with consistent page numbers and revision dates; several speakers said they received the packet late and had difficulty using the PDF. Council members agreed to standardize fund and department nomenclature on the front-page summaries so that "general administration" lines and the broader "general fund" are easier to reconcile.

The council conducted the required first readings for Ordinances 04-2026 and 05-2026 (budget amendments and fiscal-year appropriations) and an ordinance amending the pay plan. No final votes on the substantive budget ordinances occurred at the meeting; councilors indicated they will continue to refine line-item presentation and asked staff to provide clearer documentation and timing for distribution to the council and public.

The meeting record shows several attendees asked for a written explanation of changes and for regularly published accounts-payable and payroll pension/benefit detail so that the public can verify offsets such as rental fee reimbursements for community-center services. The council also reaffirmed that any program-specific funds (for example, the Grow Grants discussed later in the meeting) will have parameters finalized before funds are released.