FALSE ALARM: No Budget Crisis, It Was Just An Exercise

False Alarm. The Bus got it wrong. There is no budget crisis. This whole thing was just an exercise for the city department heads to practice their budget cutting skills.

Yesterday, I blogged on a report KY3 News aired about how Springfield city government must cut millions from the city's budget.

This morning I was going through my daily blog readings and I stumbled upon an oddly formatted blog posting on a local blog. (It has since been reformatted.) The blogger had asked for, and received the city's response to the KY3 report on the budget crisis. Since the post was so oddly formatted, I downloaded it to Microsoft Word so I could read it. The post downloaded in two different typefaces, which may or may not be significant (HTML Preformatted and the last paragraph in Normal).

I thought nothing of it,and read the post, the last paragraph of which is the money quote:

Again, at this point, the budget cuts being proposed by Departments to the City Manager's Office to provide to Council are considered an exercise for this year' s budget process and no definite budget decisions have been made.

So there you have it, the whole affair was just an exercise by staff for this year's budget process and no definite budget decisions have been made.

I was wrong to assume otherwise. After all, we all know what happens when you ass-u-me something.

But didn't City Manager Bob Cumley say last night on KY3 News: "We've asked the departments to come back with somewhere in the neighborhood, with, with proposals in the neighborhood of 5% cuts in each of the departments"? Didn't Paula Morehouse report "City departments have been told to cut about 5 percent each"? The link is here.

After lunch, I noticed that a paragraph had been added to that blog posting that was so oddly formatted. I downloaded it also. (It downloaded in yet a different type face-Normal+Palatino - significant? I don't know.)

Still later this afternoon I received the following in an email from the city. It had ended up in my bulk email folder. It was the city's response that had been posted on the other blog. The first paragraph is the added paragraph I mentioned above. (I have cut and pasted it from my email.)

"The City Manager's Office, at City Council's request, asked all
City departments to prepare a budget exercise detailing how they would
propose cutting 7 percent of their General Fund budget only. This
information was requested in order to provide City Council with the potential
impact that budget cuts would have on City services and/or personnel.
Council will use this information for its discussion at a budget workshop
being planned for late March.
"Departments have been given the discretion of proposing budget cuts
in either supplies/services and/or personnel, such as open positions
they would elect not to fill.
"The budget cuts may be necessary for one or two reasons. Currently,
sales tax revenue is just under 1 percent below the same period last
year. The City had budgeted for a 3 percent growth rate, so that's a
potential 4 percent decrease in sales tax if current trends hold. There
are other tax revenue sources, such as the gross receipts tax, that may
make up some of that difference so it's not clear yet what the complete
revenue picture will be at the end of the budget year in June.
"The other issue Council will have to address is funding for the
Police/Fire Pension System. In order to increase the annual contribution
to the system, the City would have to cut back in other areas and
Council wants a true picture of the impact of those cuts.
"The General Fund is one portion of the budget. It is the area where
the City has discretion in its spending and is basically the area of
the budget that pays for core services such as public safety and public
works. Other funds are designated for specific purposes, such as the
voter-approved Capital Improvements funds or sales tax funds designated
specifically for law enforcement, emergency communications, parks, or
transportation. The City by law does not have the discretion to move
revenue from designated sources into the General Fund to address either a
budget shortfall or the contribution level to the Police/Fire Pension
System.
"Again, at this point, the budget cuts being proposed by Departments
to the City Manager's Office to provide to Council are considered an
exercise for this year' s budget process and no definite budget
decisions have been made."

So there you have it. I got it wrong.

I could have sworn I heard him say "5%" not "7%".
I could have sworn I heard him say "we have asked the department heads" not "at City Council's request"
I could have sworn I heard him say, "things are not real good right now", not "prepare a budget exercise".
I've been wrong before.
I guess I am wrong again.
Sorry.