Mayor presents draft budget; state changes could reduce city flexibility

The mayor provided council members with a draft budget in August and emphasized the document is preliminary, with final adoption planned for October after public notices and a September first reading.

She told council the city is still waiting for miscellaneous revenue amounts from the state and that recent state legislation (referred to in the transcript as "house bill 1001") restricts use of building-department nonreverting funds to purposes directly related to the building department. "The new legislation says we cannot use it for anything except directly related to the building department," the mayor said, noting the city previously used those funds for code enforcement, MS4 program costs, and other public-safety related expenses. She said she has asked the state board of accounts for clarification about whether MS4 inspection work can still be funded from that account.

The mayor also said the county had notified municipalities it plans to increase the EMS income tax, which could shrink the city's share of that revenue. She said she will attend the county meeting on Aug. 10 to seek more information and will update council members as details become available. The mayor asked members to review the draft and forward questions to staff during August so revisions can be made prior to first reading in September.