The City Council Finance Committee tentatively approved its budget work Wednesday to submit to the full Council, but not before two hot topics resurfaced.
Council member John Crescimbeni said he was concerned about the approved motion to cut the library budget by $2.1 million. He cited heavy cuts in the past few years in addition to the substantial cut this year.
The libraries plan to close one day a week, possibly Mondays, to help absorb the cut.
Committee Chairman Richard Clark said the committee didn’t force the closures. He said the committee only approved the budget cuts. He said library money formerly provided by the Better Jacksonville Plan funds was no longer available.
Finance Committee member Bill Bishop supported Crescimbeni’s idea, but questioned where to find the money to re-establish the funding.
Crescimbeni alluded to money allocations like the $3.9 million “paygo” for road resurfacing, but several other members responded that not accumulating further debt for such projects was, as Bishop said, “the direction we have got to go.”
Before the library discussion, the committee approved $3.9 million from a special Council contingency fund to pay for road resurfacing and avoid debt.
Crescimbeni’s motion to restore funding to the library was seconded but denied in the committee’s full vote.
Following the decision, Sheriff John Rutherford sought to have $2.2 million that was initially cut from his budget and moved into the City’s general fund be instead placed into a contingency fund for the JSO to use later.
Last week, the committee cut the sheriff’s office budget by $4.46 million, with half put into the City general fund and the other half put into a contingency fund for the sheriff.
Rutherford asked for all of the funds cut to be put into a contingency fund.
The sheriff’s budget was cut, contingent on a union concession of a 2 percent pay cut for police members originally budgeted and a U.S. Department of Justice grant being awarded to fund 50 positions.
Last week, the committee defunded the 50 positions for the grant because the money had not been awarded yet, and adjusted for the JSO budget under no assumption of the pay cut.
Rutherford said that while budget decisions were the choices of the committee, it was his job to tell the consequences of such actions. He said he would need to make the 52 layoffs he mentioned last week.
Crescimbeni asked Rutherford about civilian employees and whether those positions could be cut instead of police officers.
Rutherford’s attempt to convince the committee to restore funding was unsuccessful. The motion was not taken up.
When he asked following silence if the committee members would move it to vote, Clark responded, “no, sir.”
Meanwhile, the substituted budget ordinance was unanimously approved and will be voted on Sept. 27 in the final Council meeting before the Oct. 1 start of the new fiscal year or, as Clark ceremoniously stated at the beginning of the meeting, “when we really, really mean it this time.”
Council members will still be able to make pitches to adjust the budget at the full Council meeting, although Clark warned last week that changes to restore funding in some areas would require cuts in others.
Crescimbeni said he will revisit the library funding.
In other news from Tuesday’s meeting, an ordinance to authorize a lease agreement with the U.S. Green Building Council’s North Florida Chapter to move into a 4,940-square-foot retail space on the first floor of the parking garage on Duval Street was approved, but not without debate and a change that could be a “deal-breaker.”
Under the original agreement, the organization would receive free rent and utilities for five years with no renewal option to operate an educational facility for energy and water conservation efficiency practices. The organization would build out the space.
There was opposition to include utilities in the agreement by a couple of members, led by Bishop. He attempted an amendment to remove the utilities language, which he said set a bad precedent.
Sarah Boren, North Florida chapter executive director, told the committee the organization is spending $500,000 on renovations and requested free utilities as part of the deal.
Without free utilities, she said, the board would likely deem it a deal-breaker. It was suggested a per-month utilities cap of $500 be implemented, but $350 was decided on and approved.
The North Florida chapter board will review the amended lease agreement and vote on it before Tuesday’s full Council meeting.
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