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Gonzalez council to readvertise capital outlay after new items added; ambulance purchase and payment timing discussed
Summary
City staff told council that changes to the capital outlay budget require readvertising and a 10-day public-notice period, potentially delaying adoption by about two weeks and temporarily limiting payments on unfunded projects; council agreed to introduce an amended ordinance focused on previously advertised projects and schedule a special hearing.
City staff and council spent substantial time debating changes to the FY2025–26 capital outlay budget (ordinance 4268), concluding that added items required readvertising and a 10-day public-notice period that could push final adoption into mid‑June unless the city limits the advertised ordinance to previously advertised or grant-funded projects.
Mr. Davis (city staff) told the council that because changes were made after the original advertisement, legal advice is that the city must re‑advertise. He said the 10‑day public-notice clock would likely place a final public hearing in mid‑June (“we're probably looking at mid mid June, about June 16 or something”), and warned that “between now and that special meeting … projects cannot be expended” unless they remain within the previously advertised items or have grant funding.
Council and staff discussed two exceptions staff proposed to keep in the ordinance: funding for an additional ambulance requested by the chief (to avoid supply‑chain delays) and small equipment items tied to ongoing projects. Council members asked whether departments could operate on 50% of the prior year’s budgets during a funding gap; staff explained that the 50% rule applies to operating funds but does not automatically apply to capital projects.
After discussion, council voted to introduce an amended capital outlay ordinance that would focus on projects under contract or fully grant‑funded and to readvertise the ordinance so a special meeting and public hearing could be scheduled as soon as the public‑notice period allows. Council members and staff said they would prepare the revised ordinance for publication and seek consensus on which capital items to include.
Next steps: staff will prepare the amended ordinance for publication, begin the 10‑day notice period, and the council will schedule a special meeting/public hearing to finalize adoption and resolve funding for items such as the ambulance purchase.
