Reprint from the Progress Times - August 3, 2007
©Progress Times 2007 - All Rights Reserved

Preliminary 2007-2008 Fiscal Budget given to council

By Kathy Olivarez

Copies of the 2007-2008 preliminary fiscal budget were presented to the Mission City Council during the Monday, July 23, meeting of the council.

The budget included a three percent salary increase for all hourly employees, and $1,000 increase to base pay for all Civil Service Employees, which includes policemen and fire fighters.

Four new employees for the Parks Department were included in the budget.

Aid to others amounted to $439,000. (See Table A for Breakdown.)

The capital outlay budget included $700,000 for street projects and $190,500 for equipment.

The General Fund had resources amounting to $37,473,509.

The Utility Fund had resources of $14,600,029. The budget included a three percent salary increase for all hourly employees and capital outlay of $465,000 for equipment. (See Table B for Appropriations.)

The Golf Course Fund had revenues of $1,137,500. The budget included a three percent increase for hourly employees and capital outlay of $50,500 for equipment.

The projected ending fund balance for 2007 general fund is $3,826,208. Total special funds are projected to be $10,491,170.

The city manager’s recommendation for the unreserved, undesignated fund balance for the 2007-2008 budget is set at $4,153,108.

Public Safety received a total budget of $12,506,069. This included police, $10,484,756; fire, $3,579,222 and fire prevention, $442,091.

Streets and Highways was budgeted at $3,427,519

The utility budget showed total operations of $14,373,519.

Culture and Recreation, which includes the museum, Parks and Recreation and the library, was allotted $3,650,058.

Revenues include current ad valorem taxes of $14,000,000; delinquent taxes of $600,000; penalty and interest at $430,000; with a negative $15,000 in tax refunds. Sales tax was set at $6,675,000 while sales tax abatement was figured at $3,337,000. Franchise business taxes were set at $1,775,000. The telecommunications access fee was set at $225,000.

Community Development Block Grant funds had total revenues of $854,004.

The Hotel/Motel Tax Fund resources amounted to $438,294 including estimated revenues of $356,100.

The Tax Increment Fund had total available resources of $1,004,490.

The Debt Service Fund showed total available resources of $3,500,435.

The budget for the Group Health Insurance Fund amounted to $4,474,905.

A public hearing on the budget will be held Monday, August 13, at the next council meeting.