Carefree Truth

Issue #259, June 14, 2013

 

 

 

 

Jim Keen reported that as of April 30th, the latest available figures, income exceeded expenditures by $165,000.  As usual, the big expenditures are made at the beginning of each fiscal year, after which the Town slowly replenishes the funds with income. 

 

 

 

Councilman Glenn Miller told Gary Neiss that "everybody loves to see graphs", so Mr. Neiss generated a graph (see the slide in the YouTube) showing all the components from which sales tax revenue is derived.  These are utilities, construction, manufacturing, retail, rentals, restaurants/bars, accommodations, services, and other.  Sales tax revenues are down 7.16% from this time last year, and the graph showed that the big lag is in the construction category.  The others were nearly equal to this time last year.  Councilwoman Melissa Price pointed out that construction is beginning to pick up again, so that revenue income will begin increasing in the foreseeable future. 

 

 

 

Mayor David Schwan stated, "Over the past several months, we've talked about the budget.  I've heard comments from people on the Council or particularly in the public that, quote, 'The Town is running down reserves; we're spending money out of reserves.'  So I've prepared this analysis of unrestricted reserves, money in the bank, even while we ran the Town and did several capital projects, actually a number of capital projects.  So we are not running down the reserves; we're running the Town on current income.  Even at the end of the year, we expect to increase reserves.  So the statement that this Town is in financial trouble, that we're operating out of reserves-boulderdash, humbug, wrong.  We're not.  We're operating out of current income."

 

 

 

The actual unrestricted reserve balance as of 4/30/12 was $5,037,000.  As of 4/30/13 it was $5,178,838, an increase of $141,768.  The actual unrestricted reserve balance as of the end of fiscal year 2011/2012 was $5,443,066.  The conservative estimate for that balance as of the end of the 2012/2013 fiscal year is $5,537,620, an increase of $94,554.  (See the slide in the YouTube.)    

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSjiWtnzR0I

 

 

Lyn Hitchon 

 

 

 

 

 

Prepared by Carefree Truth

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