By George W. Davis
GREEN: When city council meets Tuesday for the last time this year, members are expected to approve a $32,920,940 appropriations bill for 2017, despite a couple questions being raised during a budget study session this week.
Under the bill, next year’s projected spending will decline $1.5 million, or 4.3 percent, from this year, Finance Director Steven Schmidt said.
One question resulted in dropping $32,000 from the proposed $501,757 budget for Mayor Gerard Neugebauer’s office after a typographical error was discovered during the session. The total is now $469,737.
Another that caught the attention of councilman at large Stephen Dyer was a line item that allocated $13,000 for an annual coffee budget.
Schmidt, who presented the budget with Chris Humphrey, the council’s finance committee chair, explained that the total was about what was used this year for the city. The figure covers coffee made available for the city’s 139 employees and at city-sponsored special events.
Also noted was the addition of four new positions next year within the city.
Included is a full-time mayor’s assistant for public relations and communications at a salary of $80,000 plus $37,905 in benefits. Valerie Wolford, who has handled the city’s communications since May 2008, has served as a contract employee at $75,000 annually without city benefits.
A civil engineer also is being added for City Engineer Paul Pickett’s office at $45,000. Two part-time fire inspectors will be joining the fire department at a total cost of $37,440 for both, Schmidt said.
Schmidt is set to make $93,000 this year, about a $10,000 raise over the $82,500 his predecessor made in 2015.
Schmidt said he is estimating income tax revenue next year to be about $20.3 million, which he called conservative compared to the anticipated 2016 amount of $21.9 million.
Neugebauer said city income tax revenues continue to show steady growth.
Dyer pointed out that Ohio Gov. John Kasich told the legislature Tuesday that tax collections were down 5 percent and is was warning of a possible recession in Ohio.
Humphrey said the proposed Green budget will maintain a six-month reserve fund set aside in case of emergency.
The budget includes $821,400 for minor capital purchases in various departments. Also in the budget are plans to repay the Parks and Recreation Division’s capital improvements budget $2 million, which was borrowed in 2015 to start work on Central Park.
George W. Davis can be reached at: mediaman@sssnet.com