McKinney working toward passage of balanced budget

The City of McKinney is proposing a budget of $90.2 million for the coming fiscal year, an amount down $3.1 million from its current budget. City council has already held two retreats to discuss the details, which include no rise in property tax, and is expected to take final action on Sept. 19.

Public hearings on the budget will be held on Sept. 7 and 21.

“Nearly every city in the country has faced a difficult budget process this year, and McKinney is no different,” said Interim City Manager Rick Chaffin. “But by working together and focusing on prudent and active budget monitoring, we’ve been able to ensure that the city is balancing the budget in a way that’s sustaining not only for next fiscal year, but for years to come.”

Under the proposed budget, General Fund expenditures exceed revenue by about $4 million. Funding reductions are one method the city is using to cover the gap. Both the police and fire departments will take a four percent cut and public works will see a nine percent drop in funding. According to a budget presentation given to council, almost half of the public works reduction will come from maintenance and repair to concrete streets.

The largest police and fire cuts result from delaying vehicle replacement, which between the two will save $621,000. The police department will also use less money on computer hardware, uniforms and ammunition. The fire department will hold open three positions and use some of the savings for overtime costs.

Some fund balance dollars will be used to fill the remaining revenue-expenditure gap. Under the proposed budget, the General Fund balance will drop from 26 million (Fiscal Year 2009-10) to an estimated 23.6 million.

“Although budget reductions and a portion of the fund balance were used to bridge the gap between revenues and expenditures, we plan to continue moving forward on Capital Improvement Projects and bond projects,” said Deputy City Manager Jim Parrish. “We are committed to investing in the community for long-term growth and maintaining quality services by making fiscally prudent, practical decisions and limiting financial burdens on citizens.”

The budget under consideration provides for no raises for city staff and no layoffs, though seventeen frozen positions will remain unfilled and the city will cover increases in health care costs for its employees. Council was cautioned that services may be negatively affected due to increased workloads.

Salaries and benefits make up 67 percent of the general fund budget.

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