HomeMy WebLinkAboutMeeting Notes 9-16-2015
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BUDGET COMMITTEE
Meeting Notes - September 16, 2015
Committee present: Eric Levine - Chairman, Herb Engman, Pat Leary
Staff present: Mike Solvig, Jim Weber
Others present: Bill Goodman
Meeting was called to order at: 12:01 p.m.
AGENDA ITEMS:
• Review and approve meeting notes from July 29, 2015.
Mr. Solvig reported the previous meeting notes from July 29 have not yet been completed.
• Review Year-to-Date Status of 2015 Sales Tax Collections.
The Committee reviewed Sales Tax collections for the first seven months of 2015. Mr. Solvig
reported that collections for July 2015 were 6.5% over collections in July 2014. For the first seven
months of 2015, total collections of $1,705,421 continue to fall short, by 2.3%, of the $1,748,894
total collections for the same period in 2014.
• Review and Discuss 2016 Ithaca Town Budget.
The Committee reviewed two versions of the 2016 Tentative Budget. The first version, with a
1.59% increase in the property tax levy, complies with the requirements of the property tax cap /
tax freeze for 2016. The alternate version, with a 6.59% increase in the property tax levy, does not
comply with the requirements of the property tax cap / tax freeze for 2016.
The alternate version would increase the tax levy in the Highway Fund from $1,000,000 in 2015 to
$1,500,000 in 2016, a 50% increase. The Town currently relies on bonding as the major source of
funds for annual highway capital projects, as the Town’s current budget structure does not include
funds for this purpose. While bonding does provide the needed funds, it also carries the
additional expense of the annual interest payments. The Town will pay $83,000 in interest
expense on existing highway debt in 2016. This expense will continue to increase as future
highway debt is issued, and interest rates increase from the historic lows of the past four years.
In adopting the alternate version of the budget for 2016, the Town would immediately have the
funds available to complete the proposed 2016 road improvements without issuing any new
bonds, and would be able to stop bonding, or at least significantly reduce bonding, for road
improvements in future years. While the Town would not comply with the tax cap in 2016, it
would be able to the next year. A series of smaller increases, say a $100,000 increa se each year
over five years, would result in an annual tax levy increase of at least 3.5%. This would put the
Town over the tax cap limit each year for the next five years.
After much discussion, it was the consensus of the Committee to present the Town Board with the
alternate version as the 2016 Tentative Budget.
Highlights for this budget include the following:
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- The 2016 Ithaca Town Budget will increase from $24,296,077 in 2015 to $25 ,062,216 in 2016,
an increase $766,139 or 3.2%.
- The budgeted total for Personnel Costs increases from $5,332,745 in 2015 to $5,470,306 in
2016, an increase of $137,561 or 2.6%. Personnel costs represent 21.8% of the Town’s total
2016 budget.
- Total for Personal Services increases to $3,449,706 in 2016 from $3,434,355 in 2015, an
increase of $15,351 or 0.4%.
- The budgeted total for Employee Benefits increases to $2,020,600 in 2016 from $1,898,390
in 2015, an increase of $122,210 or 6.4%. Total employee benefits are now 58.6% of the
total for employee salaries and wages.
- Payments for employee retirement are budgeted for $574,000 in 2016, a decrease of
$1,700 or 0.3% from the $575,700 total budgeted in 2015.
- Payments for employee health insurance are budgeted for $1,004,500 in 2016, an
increase of $98,900 or 10.9% from the $905,600 total budgeted in 2015.
- Capital Projects will total $4,550,000 in 2016; a decrease of $75,000 or 1.6% from the
$4,625,000 total budgeted in 2015. Capital projects represent 18.2% of the Town’s total
budget.
- Contractual Services increase to $10,976,922 in 2016; an increase of $378,574 or 3.6% over
the $10,598,348 in 2015. Contractual services represent 43.8% of the total budget for 2016.
- Equipment/Capital Outlay decreases from $907,000 in 2015 to $840,000 in 2016; a decrease
of $67,000 or 7.4%. Equipment/capital outlay represents 3.4% of the Town’s total budget.
- Sales Tax collections for 2016 are budgeted at $3,097,000. Sales tax collections for the Town
have been strong in recent years, but 2015 collections estimated at $2,978,330 will fall short
of the prior year total by 5.0%. Sales tax collections represent 12.9% of the Town’s total
budgeted revenues.
- Contributions to community organizations/programs will total $342,088 in 2016, a decrease
of $42,326 from 2015, and eliminates annual contributions to the Tompkins County Public
Library, Lifelong, Gadabout, Human Services Coalition, and hydrilla outreach services.
- The Town will transfer (re-designate) $75,000 from the unreserved fund balance in the
General Townwide Fund to the Parks and Open Space Plan Reserve.
- The 2016 Property Tax Levy will total $7,685,200, an increase of $475,000 or 6.59% over the
prior year. This increase does not comply with the property tax cap and tax freeze for 2016.
Property taxes are the Town’s largest revenue source, representing 32.3% of total budgeted
revenues.
- The property tax bill for a typical property in the Town of Ithaca will increase from $1,365.26
in 2015 to $1,424.48 in 2016, an increase of $59.23 or 4.3%. The typical property in the Town
of Ithaca is a single family residence with an assessed value of $190,000. The property tax bill
totals include water and sewer benefit assessment charges.
- Water rates will increase 2.7% to $6.55/1000 gallons of consumption. Sewer rates, also
based on water consumption, will increase 0.9% to 4.31/1000 gallons. The combined effect
on the quarterly water & sewer bill will be an increase of $2.02 or 2.1%, increasing from
$97.96 per quarter in 2015 to $99.98 per quarter in 2016.
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• Review and Discuss 2016 Bolton Point Budget.
The Committee reviewed Bolton Point’s 2016 Tentative Budget. The total budget will increase
from $4,261,268 in 2015 to $4,402,883 in 2016. This is an increase of $141,615 or 3.3% over the
prior year. The water rate charged to member municipalities will increase from $4.35/1000
gallons in 2015, to $4.44/1000 gallons in 2016, an increase of 2.1%.
• Discuss 2015 Bond Issue.
There was no new information or further discussion on this topic.
• Property Tax Cap and Property Tax Freeze Programs.
Mr. Engman reported that the last information we had on the status of the County’s Government
Efficiency Plan for 2016 was that the State is unlikely to approve the plan. If the plan is not
approved, the Town will not qualify for the Tax Freeze Program tax rebates for the 2016 tax year.
• Town’s voluntary contributions to Community Organizations/Programs.
The Town’s 2016 Tentative Budget will include the elimination of annual contributions to the
Tompkins County Public Library, Lifelong, Gadabout, Human Services Coalition, and hydrilla
outreach services.
• Other Items.
- Preliminary Budget for the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility: Mr. Solvig reported
that this was just received from the City yesterday. The total budget will decrease from
$3,780,756 in 2015 to $3,725,681 in 2016. This is a decrease of $55,075 or 1.5% from the
prior year. The Town’s payment for 2016 will total $1,154,402.
- Sale of Surplus Equipment: Mr. Solvig reported that the sale of the Town’s surplus
equipment on September 12 at the Lansing Town Barn went very well. Thirteen pieces of
equipment sold for a combined total of $158,600. After deducting the auctioneer’s 10%
commission, the Town received $142,740.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:23 p.m.
Next Meeting: Wednesday, October 28, 2015 at 12:00 pm, Town Hall - Aurora Room