By Julie Mehta
The proposed $11 million city budget discussed by the city council June 5 reflects Saratoga's continuing tradition of being a minimum-service city.
The most notable new expenditures in the budgets for the next two years are for uses ranging from implementation of the city's technology master plan to the addition of an evening deputy sheriff patrol officer to furniture replacement, according to Finance Director Thomas Fil, who presented the budget to the council.
The total 1996-97 proposed revenues for all city funds is about $10.5 million with proposed expenditures of $11 million. For 1997-98, the approximately $11 million of revenues will slightly exceed the $10.8 million of planned expenditures.
While the expenditures have remained fairly steady, the total revenues are down significantly from the estimated $12 million for 1995-96. Fil says the current year's revenues were higher because of new construction projects, such as the Greenbriar development. About $7.5 million of the available funds for each of the next two years is in the General Fund, which can be used for any purpose.
In the coming year, the city will transfer about $760,000 from the General Fund to a reserve fund used for improvements to City Hall and the Civic Theatre that has over $2 million in debt.
Public safety costs will continue to eat up the biggest piece of the budget pie. The city will add a new evening deputy sheriff patrol officer to the tune of about $90,000 next year.
The technology master plan costs for the next two years will be principally for acquisition of new hardware and software and for the hiring of a part-time Technology Coordinator to oversee the equipment and train city staff. About $350,000 is budgeted for this purpose over the next two years.
In the 1997-98 year, about $600,000 will go toward construction of the new Quito Road Bridge and another $100,000 will be used for building sidewalks and bike paths.
Other budget highlights include the addition of 1.2 employees to the current 53.55 next year, grants to West Valley College and Saratoga Union High School District for use of their facilities, and replacement of the city's tables and chairs.
There was only one speaker at the public hearing on budget expenditures at the city council meeting. Former councilmember Jack Mallory told the council that perhaps the city needed more services and suggested more taxes may be in order.
"The city is wealthy but always runs on a shoestring and I think we should look at that tradition," said Mallory.
Mayor Paul Jacobs responded that since the city must put the utility users' tax on the November ballot, asking for more tax money might not go over very well. But both he and councilmember Ann Marie Burger emphasized how critical the utility tax is to the city's budget
"We do have lots of affluent individuals in this community but the government itself is rag-poor," said Burger.
The public hearing will be continued on June 19, after which the city council is expected to approve the budget.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, June 12, 1996.
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