Finance Commissioner Matthew McCabe made no changes to the budget that had been defeated only days ago when he brought it to the Tuesday, Nov. 20, meeting.
The one thing that did change, however, was this time he had the votes to pass it.
The Saratoga Springs City Council, by a margin of 3-to-2, passed the 2008 budget. Commissioner of Accounts John Franck and Commissioner of Public Works Thomas McTygue cast the dissenting votes.
At the heart of the budget controversy was $8 million set aside for a new public safety facility in the capital programs budget. Public Safety Commissioner Ron Kim and members of the capital budget program committee felt the amount, which is $4 million less than any proposed facility Kim has brought before the board, was a slap in the face of the work they had done over the past two years.
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 did 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.
On Nov. 20, Kim reversed his stance on the budget from only five days before, saying he would rather have the $8 million than no money at all.
The bottom line here, folks, is that we’ve waited too long, he said about the safety facility. `I reluctantly support this ` the alternative being that there is no money in the capital programs budget.`
Mayor Valerie Keehn reiterated Kim’s notion that the time was right to move forward with the project.
`If we don’t do it now it may not get done,` she said. `Council after council have used the same excuses over and over to not move forward with this.`
Frank did not think the time was right for such a hefty capital project. He pointed to rising oil prices and a declining housing market as indicators of unstable financial times. He also pointed to the uncertainty of horse racing in the community after the first of the year, and what he thinks may be a delayed or non-existent property tax payment from the New York Racing Association. NYRA has submitted a plan of reorganization to get out of bankruptcy, but the Internal Revenue Service says NYRA owes it $1.6 billion.
`I don’t even know if we’re going to have a 2008 track meet, and even if it is held by NYRA, they’re in bankruptcy,` he said.
Frank also pointed out that 10 percent of the city’s operating budget is dependent on gambling. He said video lottery terminal revenue is not secure, and it is a dicey proposition to have such a large portion of the budget dependent on it.
McCabe gave a similar warning about sales tax revenue. He said 2007 sales tax revenues might fall $1 million short of the budgeted amount. Sales tax for the first three fiscal quarters of the year were on par with 2006 levels, he said, but not increased as some expected. He predicted a decline in revenue for the fourth quarter, but noted those figures will not come in until after he is out of office.
Frank also said that the council may be voting to charge the taxpayer for money that may not be spent by the next City Council.
`In order to bond this we need a four-fifths vote on the next City Council. I don’t think we’re going to get a four-fifths vote,` he said.
Republican Mayor-elect Scott Johnson has been lukewarm to bonding out a public safety facility. During the mayoral debates, Johnson said he supported a lease-buyback of a facility and suggested finding alternative revenue streams for it, such as paid parking.
Incoming Commissioner of Finance Ken Ivins said the city needs a new facility but has to be able to afford it. “