Editor’s note: The Saratoga Spotlight went to press before the Tuesday, Nov. 20, meeting at which the Saratoga Springs City Council was expected to discuss multiple budget scenarios. Visit www.spotlightnews.com for updates to this story.
Adoption of the city’s 2008 budget was put on hold Thursday, Nov. 15, as the Saratoga Springs City Council could not come to a consensus as to how much money should be allowed to go to bond in 2008 for a new public safety facility.
As it stands, city taxpayers face an average tax increase of 8.64 percent, or $5.36 per $1,000, of assessed value. If a budgeted $8 million for a public safety facility does not go through, the tax rate would drop to an average of 5.25 percent or $5.19 per $1,000 of assessed value, according to the city Finance Department. The tax rate for 2007 was $4.94 per $1,000 of assessed value.
Commissioner of Finance Matthew McCabe weathered more than an hour of argument and criticism when he presented his budget at a special meeting Thursday.
Capital Program Budget Committee Chairman Lew Benton accused McCabe of being secretive in his budget process, and shunning the two years of work the committee has done in favor of his own figures.
If you agree with us, fine. If you don’t agree with us, fine. But at least talk to us, said Benton. He also urged McCabe to wait until Nov. 21, when new requests-for-proposals (RFPs) are due back for the proposed facility.
Resident John Goldberg asked McCabe what the rush was.
`There are no penalties for a late budget, and if you have to have a late budget to get things right, then so be it,` he said.
McCabe opened his agenda by saying that accusations of his budget process not being transparent were `not worthy of responding to.` He did say that he did edit and move things around in the capital programs budget, `as is the right of this office,` he said.
`The room is there. The flexibility is there,` McCabe said of the budget. `Does that mean I’ll support a $10 million, $12 million project? No.`
When he asked for a second on his motion to adopt the budget, a few tense moments passed before McCabe got a response. Public Safety Commissioner Ron Kim gave a second for discussion, and said he would not vote for the budget `simply because it raises taxes too high.`
Kim said the city could decrease the tax burden by using the city’s $2 million surplus to relieve the tax burden.
In a later interview, McCabe said the city had nowhere near a $2 million surplus. He said the city has a surplus that is closer to $165,000, and that using any amount of the surplus funds for capital projects would go against the state comptroller’s recommendation to have a reserve of approximately 5 percent of the city’s operating budget.
In an interview after the meeting, McCabe said he would not support a plan that included more than $8 million for a new public safety building. He said waiting for the RFPs to come in would be a moot point, because the $8 million he set aside for the facility represents the `most aggressive budget the people of Saratoga Springs could afford.`
Kim questioned how McCabe arrived at the $8 million figure and also questioned the city’s priorities.
`Somehow it’s OK that this community is going to spend $6 million on a gym and only $8 million on a public safety facility,` he said.
Commissioner of Public Works Thomas McTygue made a friendly amendment to pull the $8 million for the public safety facility, in lieu of scrapping the entire budget altogether.
McCabe supported McTygue’s friendly amendment. `I’m not going to let the infrastructure projects go just because we can’t agree on a public safety building,` he said.
Kim then withdrew his second to McCabe’s original motion and the meeting was adjourned amid confusion and argument over meeting procedure.
The finance commissioner’s initial $48.4 million 2008 budget included no funds for capital projects and would have raised taxes by 4.87 percent. If the council cannot agree on a budget by Nov. 30, the earlier budget would be enacted. “