by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
The first round of budget hearings went off without much drama Thursday although the television show planned by the City’s Public Information Division (PID) may have gotten the axe.
City Council and Finance Committee member Richard Clark spearheaded the quickly-debated effort to can the program that was budgeted for $175,000 during the next fiscal year.
“I am surprised to see the television program still in here,” said Clark of the PID’s overall proposed budget of $3.7 million for 48 employees. “I am not real excited about supporting this in times like these.”
Clark then made a motion to amend the PID budget, effectively removing the funding for the program. “The City Current” is supposed to replace four other TV shows and two publications the City produces. Renee Brust, a special assistant to the mayor for media relations, is in charge of the program.
Chief of Policy Adam Hollingsworth said the program was going to be “professional and effective” and a way the City can “reduce printing expenses” associated with promoting various aspects of City government.
Former Finance chair Kevin Hyde said the TV show came up while he was chair. Hyde said he didn’t approve it then and he doesn’t now.
“We fought this battle last year,” he said. “I thought it was a bad idea then and I support this amendment now. We are here to make some tough choices this year.”
Finance Chair Art Shad called for a vote and the show was unanimously rejected. However, it’s not out of the PID budget for good. That may come in late September when the full Council votes on the final budget.
Thursday’s budget hearings began early with a special meeting of the full Council who heard a one-hour presentation on the entire budget from Council Auditor Kirk Sherman.
“We start this process in the spring with the administration’s various departments and look at their needs for the upcoming year,” said Sherman, explaining there is plenty of give and take long before the semi-set version is submitted to the Mayor’s Budget Review Committee where it is picked apart division-by-division, line-by-line. “Sometimes they (the departments) ask for things that are difficult to afford. This year was very challenging.”
Unlike years past, no one within the City had a firm grasp of their potential budgets until after the State Legislature finalized the property tax reform. When all was said and done, Mayor John Peyton submitted a budget just shy of $960 million. That figure doesn’t include the various independent agencies and other groups that figure into the total City budget.
“A gross budget of $4.6 billion is what you will be viewing and reviewing this summer,” Sherman told the Council.
Thursday afternoon’s session started with the Police & Fire Pension Fund. Executive Director John Keane submitted a budget of $20.6 million, which is 15 percent below last year’s budget.
“This is a good news budget as far as we are concerned,” said Keane, who oversees a fund with a current market value of $1.091 billion as of May 31. That’s up almost $50 million from the previous May 1. Keane added his funds would be doing even better if not for certain market stresses such as the rising sub-prime rate, bankruptcies, a slow down in new construction and foreclosures. “Most news from the capital markets is bad news.”
Keane then went on to present a 10-point plan for maintaining a strong fund and growing its assets. He also said he intends to lobby the Legislature to change the laws regarding how and where he can invest the fund’s money. Keane said state law caps how much he can invest internationally and according to Keane if he was allowed to divest his domestic funds into international funds he could rates of return upwards of 16 percent.
Tax Collector Mike Hogan presented a budget of $14.2 million for 254 positions.
“We have no recommendations or concerns about the Tax Collectors Office,” said Sherman.
Hogan did recently close the Soutel Drive branch because it has been the slowest branch in town for several years now. However, all of the employees, he said, were reassigned to other branches.
“We met the mayor’s challenge quickly,” said Hogan. “Our budget represents about an 11 percent decrease from last year.”
The budget hearings resume next Thursday morning in City Council Chambers.
Budget by the numbers
Mayor John Peyton introduced an almost $960 million budget that the City Council Finance Committee will dissect line-by-line over the next three weeks. That $960 million figure is the City’s general fund portion of the budget. Combined with several other factors including special revenue funds, capital projects funds and others, the City’s actual budget is $1.75 billion.
But, that’s not all. The City’s independent agencies such as JTA, JEA and the Jacksonville Aviation Authority also submit budgets for Finance Committee scrutiny. Overall, the total budget exceeds $4.6 billion.
The following are just a few of the numbers from various budgets and other budgetary facts:
Proposed budgets
• Jacksonville Aviation Authority — $141.9 million
• Jacksonville Port Authority — $346.9 million
• Police & Fire Pension Fund — $20.6 million
• Business Improvement District — $912,460
• JTA — $195.5 million
• JEA — $2.2 billion
• Total of City independent agencies — $2.88 billion
• City contribution to Shands Jacksonville — $23.8 million
• Net decrease in City budget from last year — $23.9 million
Budget facts
• 2007-08 preliminary taxable values — $60.9 billion
• Last year’s taxable value of property — $57.9 billion
• Total proposed estimated revenues — $476.4 million
• Proposed millage rate — 8.4841
• Proposed raise for appointed employees and officials — 3 percent
• Proposed raise for elected officials — 3.5 percent
• Total proposed City personnel expenses — $484.7 million
• Proposed overtime for Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office — $15.9 million
• Proposed overtime for Jacksonville Fire & Rescue — $4.2 million
• Proposed total number of City employees — 14,361 (this includes sub-fund groups and general fund employees)
• Proposed JSO employees — 2,991
• Proposed JFRD employees — 1,303