Billion dollar spending plan: weighing "opportunity" against "lollipops"

It’s a billion dollar spending plan that’s already facing some questions.

Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown has unveiled his proposed 2014-15 budget, which totals $1.04 billion. There is no property tax rate hike and layoffs are avoided, but the Mayor uses $16.8 million in funding from the City’s reserves. His budget proposal shows only about $230,000 used in the current budget year.

“These are tough decisions, but they’re the right decisions to make the right investment to support the City of Jacksonville,” Brown says.

Former Council President Bill Gulliford is questioning the use of reserve funding. He also questions what would have happened if City Council had not voted to raise the tax rate last year- a rate which the Mayor is now using for this budget outline.

“If you’re not going to raise the millage rate, raiding reserves is an imprudent action- taking one time money to pay for operating expenses,” Gulliford says.

WOKV asked Brown why he felt the money needed to be used this year, rather than waiting for that money to come up in a future budget.

“We’re making the right investments in all the things that I think have changed the direction of this city,” he says.

He says Jacksonville is the “City of Opportunity”, and now is the time to secure that.  Among the things getting some funding in the budget proposal are several projects in Downtown Jacksonville.

“To have people coming Downtown, living Downtown, working Downtown is so important,” Brown says.

Brown is recommending $11.8 million for the first phase of the Jacksonville Landing revitalization, $1.25 million to being an environmental cleanup at the Shipyards, $4.2 million to demolish the old County Courthouse, $250,000 to redesign Met Park and $1 million to transition one-way streets in Downtown to two way streets, among other things.

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office has been granted its request, under this proposal, to hire and outfit 40 new officers and 40 Community Service Officers and upgrade its fleet.

“It’s a start that’s reasonable within our budget constraints,” says Jacksonville Sheriff John Rutherford.

Traditionally, JSO is able to save money year-over-year, and Rutherford petitions the City Council to be able to keep that money to use in the next fiscal year. The Mayor’s Office confirms to WOKV that most of the $7-8 million enhancement in the JSO budget this year to hire and outfit the officers comes from savings within JSO under the prior budget. I’m told this was an agreement worked out between JSO and the Mayor’s Office to avoid Rutherford needing to petition Council for the money once again.

He says they also have significant fleet management needs, some of which will be addressed in the upcoming budget.

“We’re going to make some sacrifices in other areas so that we can bring those officers back,” Rutherford says.

Rutherford says it’s good to see this budget also invest in some initiatives which help keep kids out of crime, which he believes is one of the more fundamental problems contributing to crime in Jacksonville.  A $665,000 boost is proposed for the Jacksonville Children’s Commission, which the Mayor says would go toward summer camps and summer jobs for area youth.  $302,000 will also help restore hours at the Main Library downtown.

Some City Councilmen, including Gulliford, are questioning the proposal- which they had not yet received at the time of the Mayor’s address. A copy was posted online shortly after. Legally, the Mayor was not required to present the budget until Tuesday.

Gulliford says, while he would like to fund all of the city’s needs, this budget may take spending too far.

“It’s an election year, you throw out the lollipops,” he says.

This proposal will now be vetted by Council, who will approve the final budget by October 1- and Gulliford says it will be a thorough process.

“Oh, I think it’s going to be brutal,” he says.

Another big question beginning to surface from several City Councilman is an apparent leap in borrowing under this proposal. The Chief Financial Officer and Chief Budget Officer confirm to WOKV that there will be more borrowing this year, although an exact figure is not yet available.

The Capital Improvement Project for this upcoming year would borrow about $40 million more for projects than the price tag projected for this upcoming year from last year’s budget talks. The Finance Office says that’s the ceiling, and real borrowing may not reach that. It also may be disbursed over several years instead.

The rise reflects the range of new projects proposed by the Mayor. The Mayor’s Office says following years of cuts, they put together this “ambitious” project schedule, so it’s expected that more borrowing would be needed to fulfill that.

The budget lists a more than 400% increase in the banking fund- or about $187 million in borrowing. CFO Ronnie Belton tells us the number is misleading, however, because it represents debt repayment as well as payment. It also incorporates a funding ceiling allowed over the life of the project, rather than the actual spending in this specific budget year.  Chief Budget Officer Glenn Hansen is compiling data on the actual borrowing and repayment in recent years, and we will update that story for you Tuesday on WOKV.

Despite what the Finance Office says, some on the Council remain skeptical. Gulliford says he would not sign on to the apparent level of proposed borrowing under his current understanding of the proposal.

I continue to work through the more than 400 page budget outline and will find the spending that impacts you. Get instant updates on Twitter (@NewsAndNom).