The city of Sedona would only be able to keep its high multi-million-dollar budget if the Home Rule Option is put on the August ballot and approved.
Although no members of the public spoke during the public hearing, the Sedona City Council members had their first discussion of the Alternative Expenditure Limit, another name for the Home Rule Option.
“Part of the issue is that the amount of how much you can spend of your local revenues isn’t based off of your local revenues, it’s based off of this expenditure limit,” the city of Sedona Director of Finance Cherie Wright said. “Home Rule essentially gives us the ability to decide what we want our expenditure limit to be which is based off of what we adopt as our tentative budget amount.”
In the city’s example, without the Home Rule option, the expenditure limit would have brought down the city’s budget by $33 million to the state allowed limit of $29.5 million for Fiscal Year 2021-22.
Since the city is mandated to fund the wastewater treatment center and other services, council members reminded the public that without approval for the Home Rule Option, the services that may need to be cut are service-based, like support for nonprofits including the Sedona Public Library, Humane Society of Sedona and more.
The state limit comes from the population and expenditures during the Fiscal Year 1979-80 and is adjusted for growth and inflation. Since Sedona was not yet incorporated at this time, the city’s number is based on neighboring and similar cities that were incorporated during that initial fiscal year.
According to the city, a failure of approval “would result in significant service level reductions,” especially since in the past the city’s amount was based off of other cities, when staff feels Sedona is unique in the state.
“To cut our budget by $33 million is dramatic … basically we would be doing no capital improvement [projects] whatsoever,” Wright said. “But it would also be drastically reducing service levels.”
According to state laws, the Home Rule Option must be placed on the ballot every four years. For the past 22 years, the city has operated under Home Rule. Of the 91 cities in Arizona, 77 or 85% also operate with this Alternative Expenditure Limitation.
At the next meeting on Tuesday, March 22, council members will be voting to put the option on the upcoming ballot following another public hearing opportunity.
Back in 2018, the last time home rule was voted on, Sedona residents were anxiously anticipating the home rule option process. According to Wright, around 66% of the population approved the option during the last vote. It regularly passes by 55% or higher.
“The community has been very supportive of the alternative expenditure limit in the past,” Councilwoman Holli Ploog said.
If approved by City Council, the home rule option will be outlined on the Tuesday, Aug. 2, ballot. Comments from the public are also being taken by the city clerk until Thursday, April 28.
