Maysville City Commission will hold the last in a series of budget workshops during a special session on Tuesday, City Manager Matt Wallingford said Friday.
“It’s been rough,” Wallingford said of the budgeting process.
Approval of a final 2019-2020 budget is expected to take place in June with a first reading on June 11 and a final reading on June 13, he said.
An increase in the city’s contribution to employee pensions and the addition of a new floodwall pump are primarily responsible for a projected deficit of $710,000, Wallingford said. The city has received a $250,000 Community Development Block Grant to help pay for the $500,000 pump, he said, but the city is still responsible for an additional $250,000 to cover the pump along with funding for piping and electrical upgrades.
The city also expects to be on the hook for $200,000 in pension contributions as the state pension fund crisis continues, Wallingford said.
The bottom line estimates a budget deficit of up to $900,000, the city manager said. But that number, he said, is only a projection that takes in the worst case scenario. This year in the 2018-2019 budget, for comparison, a $860,000 projected deficit will likely come in at $150,000-$200,000, he said.
Department heads have put in request for capital projects totaling $1.6 million and some will be approved and others will not, Wallingford said.
“There is no fluff in this budget,” he said.
Contracting the city’s garbage pick-up service has been a plus for the budget process, Wallingford said, since equipment and additional pension payments are not necessary.
Projects which will likely make the cut include a water line replacement project on Third Street next year, similar to the current project underway on Second Street, Wallingford said, as the city follows Columbia Gas’s lead in replacing gas lines.
A increase is also expected in the city’s demo budget as more abandoned properties are demolished and equipment is needed for the task, he said.
The budget is expected to total $13 million in revenue for the general fund, an increase of about $800,000 from the current fiscal year, and $4.5 million in the utility fund, the same as the current year.
“There will be a balanced budget,” Wallingford said. “There has to be.”
City commission will meet at 4 p.m.,Tuesday in the city commission chamber at city hall for the final budget workshop. As always, the meeting is open to the public.
