Kalispell contemplates $4 million budget increase
TOM LOTSHAW/Daily Inter Lake | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 12 years, 7 months AGO
Sizable increases in spending for water and sewer system improvements are driving a $4 million increase in next year’s proposed city budget.
At a work session on Monday, the Kalispell City Council will review the 146-page preliminary budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The document shows a total city budget of $46.75 million, up from $42.8 million for 2011-12.
That $4 million increase is due largely to one-time grant funds, a West Side Tax Increment Finance District project to improve a city intersection and sizable increases in capital improvement spending in Kalispell’s water, sanitary sewer and treatment and storm sewer enterprise funds.
The preliminary budget is needed to give Kalispell spending authority after the start of the new fiscal year.
Council members will review and possibly amend the preliminary budget at Monday’s work session and are set to adopt it at their next regular meeting on June 18.
Kalispell’s budget will be finalized in August or September after state officials release property valuations for the city.
“For the city’s purposes, we won’t know exactly what our revenues are until that time,” said Charlie Harball, city attorney and interim city manager. “For taxpayers, they won’t know exactly what their tax bill is going to be until that time.”
GENERAL FUND
The preliminary budget shows general fund expenditures increasing year-over-year from $9.22 million to $9.74 million.
That’s driven by spending in the police and fire departments, $130,000 for raises for union employees and a 2.5 percent contingency for the “me-too” raises recommended for nonunion employees.
A new animal control officer and the purchase of two new patrol cars and one undercover vehicle are boosting expenditures for the Kalispell Police Department.
That overall increase in budgeted general fund expenditures also is being driven by Kalispell keeping on three firefighters whose salaries and benefits have been paid by an expiring federal grant.
A grant extension that Fire Chief Dave Dedman secured will continue to pay for those firefighters for a few more months, reducing the eventual impact.
“My big goal was to keep my staffing and we’re kind of juggling things around to do that,” Dedman said.
Funding for one firefighter had to be moved from the city’s ambulance enterprise fund to the general fund because of fiscal constraints. And one vacant firefighter position in the department is projected to remain vacant.
The preliminary budget aims to maintain the general fund’s end-of-year cash balance at about 15 percent, or $1.4 million.
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS
The preliminary budget shows sizable year-over-year increases in capital improvement spending in the city’s enterprise funds:
• A roughly $525,000 increase to $1.68 million in capital improvement spending in the water fund;
• A roughly $1.5 million increase to $1.92 million in capital improvement spending in the sanitary sewer and wastewater treatment plant fund;
• And a roughly $700,000 increase to $1.19 million in capital improvement spending in the storm sewer fund.
REFINANCING
The preliminary budget does not reflect ongoing efforts to refinance some of Kalispell’s debt at lower interest rates.
That includes more than $4 million of general obligation debt outstanding for Fire Station 62 and Woodland Water Park.
It also includes $17 million of debt for water, sewer and wastewater treatment plant projects financed with fixed-rate loans through Montana State Revolving Fund programs.
The city last week was given an A+ rating by Standard and Poor’s, Harball said.
Refinancing to lower rates may save Kalispell as much as $2.5 million in interest payments over the next 15 years.
“So that’s the good news,” Harball told the council last week. “Obviously, that’s not all reflected in next year’s budget.”
The preliminary budget documents for fiscal year 2012-13 and the final budget for 2011-12 can be reviewed online at www.kalispell.com/finance/reports.php. Monday’s work session starts at 7 p.m. in Kalispell City Hall, 201 First Ave. E. It is open to the public.
Reporter Tom Lotshaw may be reached at 758-4483 or by email at tlotshaw@dailyinterlake.com.
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