Proposal calls for cap of $30.7 million, down nearly 50% since fiscal year 2007-08

The tentative fiscal year 2010-11 budget the Sedona City Council will vote on Tuesday, June 22, is 30 percent lower than the previous year.

The upcoming budget the city will propose to council is $30.7 million, though the incoming council will have the chance to change or tweak the budget up until the adoption day. However, the budget cap to be set Tuesday, May 25, cannot be exceeded by any changes made.

The proposed General Fund is set at $10,784,703, Special Revenue Funds at $4,651,322, Capital Funds at $3,088,214 and Wastewater Enterprise Fund at $12,181,841.

A budget session with the new council is scheduled for Thursday, June 10, and changes can be made then up to the cap level.

City Manager Tim Ernster pointed out the budget dropped to almost half of what it was three years ago when it totaled

$60.6 million in fiscal year 2007-08.

In fiscal year 2008-09, the budget for the city was $55.1 million before dropping to $44.5 million last year.

Of the departments within the city funded by the General Fund, the Sedona Police Department — even after two police sergeants were laid off — is the department that receives the most funding at approximately $2.05 million.

The department that receives the second highest amount of funding from the General

Fund is human resources at $1.56 million.

While the proposed general services budget is about $3.35 million of the General Fund, which is almost $1 million more than what was budgeted for the current year, Ernster said this money isn’t designated for any specific department.

He said general services is a catch-all for non-department entities.

Ernster said the general services budget is for agencies not falling under any other budget umbrella.

Not included in the proposed budget is a 50-percent reduction of the City Council’s salaries.

The four outgoing council members voted May 12 to cut the council’s salary in half. The mayor was making $650 a month, and council members were earning $450 a month prior to the cut.

Mayor Rob Adams asked for this item to be discussed and revisited with the new council Tuesday, June 8, to return salaries to the current level. The tentative budget shows the council’s budget to return to the current level.

Assistant City Manager Alison Zelms said hard decisions are made as budgets decrease.

“We just have to adjust to our new base,” she said. “We base decisions on what we funded.”

Ernster said the midyear reductions in force, where eight employees lost their jobs, will not save much money for the upcoming year since a couple of those positions will be phased out in the next several months.

Staffing at the city was reduced by 11 percent from last year’s approved budget and 15.7 percent since fiscal year 2008-09. There have also not been salary increases for city employees.

Ernster still said the city is acting wisely, reiterating its budget was cut in half over the last four years.

He said the reason this was possible is staff tried to reduce the operating budget and was successful.