by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
At the three-quarters mark, a Council Auditor’s report indicates the City is on pace to end the 2008-09 fiscal year a couple million dollars on the plus side. While that will do little to counter the projected budget deficit the City is facing in the next fiscal year, it certainly bodes better than the alternative.
Council Auditor Kirk Sherman is projecting a favorable variance of $2.1 million. That favorable variance, according to a report that was released Friday, is despite projections of revenues being down $21.3 million. The $2.1 million can be attributed to expenditures projected to be $23.4 million below budget.
The projected revenue shortfalls are due to a variety of things: a shortfall of $12.2 million in the half-cent sales tax, $1.8 million in the county sales tax portion of state revenue sharing, $2.4 million in the municipal sales tax portion of state revenue sharing and $1 million in the gasoline tax.
The projected expenditures are $23.4 million below budget for a variety of reasons as well, one of which is an anticipated positive variance in salaries of $5.2 million and employer provided benefits of $7.8 million due to savings from vacancies. Other savings may come from lower than anticipated fuel costs, operating expenses and transfers.
The report also covers most City departments and its independent agencies. The following is a brief summary of some of those departments and agencies:
• Clerk of Courts — an unfavorable variance of $1.3 million due to lower than anticipated recording fees and documentary stamps, both of which can be attributed to the current housing market.
• Tax Collector — a positive variance of about $1 million due to the sale of tax certificates.
• Equestrian Center — an unfavorable variance of just over $340,000 due to fewer events and attendance. Some of that variance is offset by lower operating costs.
• General Counsel — a favorable variance of about 41 million due to billing in excess of what was budgeted.
• JEA — no budgetary stress and JEA projects moving $102 million to a fuel reserve fund due to a drop in fuel costs.
• JTA — a projected loss in bus operations of $648,390, but overall no budgetary stress by the end of the fiscal year.
• Jacksonville Port Authority — as of June 30, the JPA was reporting a deficit of $3.2 million in operations, but is projecting a a surplus by the end of the fiscal year.
• Jacksonville Aviation Authority — showing a surplus of $3.2 million as of June 30.
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