Tonight’s City Council meeting is likely going to be a “marathon session.”
That’s what council member Robin Lumb predicted Monday as he and several of his colleagues met about changes they’d like to make to the 2014-15 budget.
Lumb called the meeting to inform his colleagues he was filing an amendment to the budget bill to negate the 2.07 percent across-the-board cut approved by the council Finance Committee. The money would come from reserves, which the Finance Committee was adamantly against.
RELATED STORY: Details on the 21 budget amendments can be found here.
Lumb wasn’t the only one to oppose the cuts.
Kimberly Daniels filed an amendment seeking $8.5 million to restore the money to all city departments and another amendment to specifically exempt the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office from having $4.35 million cut from its budget.
Doyle Carter’s amendment asks that $6.6 million be added back into the budget to the 2.07 percent cut from the sheriff’s office, Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department, the Supervisor of Elections and Public Works.
Denise Lee filed amendments to restore nearly $4 million in funding to the sheriff to hire 40 additional sworn officers and 40 Community Service Officers and to provide vehicles for the CSOs. She also filed an amendment to restore $1.7 million in funds to the Mowing and Landscape Division of the Public Works Department.
Lori Boyer filed an amendment listed at $3.9 million to use the additional revenue from rescue services to cover JFRD’s 2.07 percent rollback and to fund the investment in vehicles.
Those amendments and others would use reserve account funds to cover the shortfall that led to the reduction mandated by the finance committee on Sept. 5 for all city departments.
“Budgets are about setting priorities. Across-the-board cuts don’t set priorities,” Lumb said.
According to Council Auditor Kirk Sherman, the 2.07 percent cut would total $8,569,801, including Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department’s $1.8 million share.
On Monday, Lumb referred to the “fire fix,” a plan by JFRD to cover its part of the shortfall by increasing its collections for transporting patients to hospitals in rescue units.
Sherman said the revenue for patient transport is projected to be about $2.3 million in 2014-15.
Deducting that figure would leave $6,787,036 to be deducted from the reserves within the General Fund General Services District.
Sherman said that account is projected to have a 2014-15 balance of $65 million, so replacing the 2.07 percent cut with reserve funds would leave about $58 million in the account.
Finance Committee Chairman Richard Clark did not attend the meeting, but told the Daily Record on Monday afternoon he cannot support the amendment.
“I vehemently disagree,” he said. “We made a commitment as a council and I made a
commitment as finance chair that we were going to live within the revenue that we take in. I will not support at any time the use of one-time money or any reserves.”
Council member John Crescimbeni, a member of the Finance Committee, said he will keep an open mind about the amendments.
“I realize we have some critical issues facing the city,” he said. “But it’s important to be fiscally prudent and avoid unnecessary use of reserves.”
Finance Committee member Bill Gulliford said that negating the 2.07 percent cut to departments is likely to receive support tonight from the full council.
That doesn’t mean he supports using reserve funds to avoid cutting department budgets.
“It just adds to the $13 million we know we’re going to be short next year because of increased debt service,” Gulliford said. “So we’ll be $20 million short without any consideration of increased costs. They are burying their heads in the sand and passing the problem along to the next council.”
Lumb agrees with Gulliford on the effect that using reserves to cover this year’s shortfall will have on the next budget.
“If we do this, we’re making matters worse for the
next council,” he said. “The reality is, to hold together a functioning municipality. It has to be addressed on the revenue side.”
The council in August rejected a proposal made by Clark to increase the millage rate for property taxes to help cover the unfunded liability in the city pension plans.
Also included on the list of amendments filed before the noon Monday deadline is a Carter proposal to appropriate $92,000 from the Jacksonville Public Library budget to keep open the Maxville Branch library.
Lumb filed an amendment to restore $2.9 million in banking fund authorization to restore the Northbank Artist Walk Extension project.
Council member Don Redman filed an amendment to defund the Human Rights Commission and transfer the commission’s $263,399 budget to Public Works Maintenance.
Additional floor amendments also may be offered after the council convenes at 5 p.m today.
Lumb predicted an extended discussion among his colleagues.
“I think we’re ready for a marathon session,” he said.
The council must pass a balanced budget by Sept. 30. Last year, after adjourning the full council meeting at 2 a.m. on Tuesday, the council met in special session on Wednesday and approved the city’s 2013-14 budget by a vote of 16-2.
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