Public is welcome at tonight’s budget meeting
CITY HALL — With an increase of nearly $35 million expected next year in the city budget, officials plan to focus on strengthening core services for residents.
Also included in the upcoming 2006-07 budget, estimated at $444 million, officials will focus on maintenance that was deferred over the years, such as increased sidewalk repair,lighting for Pico neighborhood alleys and a more aggressive graffiti removal program. Core services and maintenance items had been cut or deferred in recent years because of the state’s lackluster economy.
The budget also includes funding for additional staff to help run programs that have come on line in the last year, such as the city’s Cove Skate Park, which will be fully funded for the fist time; the new Main Library; Virginia Avenue Park; and the Civic Center parking structure, according to a report prepared by Boosting city programs Schools will continue to be funded under the proposed budget, which sets aside $6.5 million for the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, an increase of $300,000.
“We think the budget is right on target,” Ewell said Tuesday. “In addition to community input we’ve received on budget priorities, I have gone out to meet with practically all of the community groups — in fact I think I’ve hit all but one now — and so they’ve talked about their budget desires. For the most part they’ve wanted to keep the commitment to education alive, many were committed to eradicating the homeless situation here … and then the other thing that was loud and clear was more graffiti removal, more street re-paving, sidewalk replacement and other services, and this is how the budget has been designed, to get back to those core services.”
The budget, which is expected to be approved in June, reflects an economy that continues to improve, particularly in Santa Monica, where revenues are generated by a variety of sources, including taxes on hotel stays and business licenses, as well as sales tax and property tax.
Revenues to support the budget total $451.8 million, a 5.1 percent increase compared to last year. Revenues for the general fund, which helps pay for basic services such as fire and police, are projected at $233.2 million. That is a 6.4 percent increase over last year. Property tax is expected to increase by $4.2 million, or 15 percent; sales tax by $1.6 million, or 5 percent; and the transient occupancy tax, or hotel tax, by $1.7 million, or 6 percent.
In addition, City Hall will receive $6.3 million in one-time revenues, which are carried over from last year, giving the City Hall the ability to fund a higher level of one-time projects.
Revenue also will come from increased fees for services. Estimates put that figure at $1.5 million above the normal increase for inflation. Most of the increases will occur in the area of building and safety, and planning services, according to the budget report.
There is some concern that the economy may take a hit because of record high fuel costs and an increase in interest rates, potentially harming the housing market. Because of advancing technologies, the possible elimination of the telecommunications portion of the local utility users tax could also result in the loss of up to $8 million in revenues annually, Ewell said.
However, those factors don’t pose serious problems for Santa Monica because of the city’s diverse sources of revenue.
“We are lucky because we have almost a true balance in every area of revenue, from our sales tax to our user utility tax,” Ewell said.“The city is truly blessed because we are able to protect ourselves from fluctuations in the economy because we do not rely on one source of revenue.”
The budget proposed by Ewell and his staff is seen as a road map for the council to follow as it debates the budget over the next few months. However, Ewell is hoping the budget will be approved as is, or at least with less than 1 percent in total budget fluctuations.
If the budget is approved in June, a major challenge in the short term will be hiring the staff necessary to fill positions created.
“Sometimes it has taken as long as eight months to hire a person for a position, and if that position is in charge of delivering services to the public and it takes eight months, then we’re not delivering an acceptable level of services,” Ewell said.
To meet the demand, Ewell said the human resources department is going through an overhaul to accelerate the hiring process.
The City Council Tuesday night held the first of two public hearings on the budget. The second is scheduled for tonight at 5:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers. The public will be afforded a chance to speak, and representatives from each department will present their requests. The council will have until the end of June to approve the budget.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 24, 2006. Read the original PDF.