The council unanimously approved the first reading of the budget, which includes $145.14 million for operations and $96.01 million for capital projects for a total of $241.15 million.
Originally, the operational budget was proposed at $144.25 million. After several workshops in which items were taken from and added to the budget, it increased about $885,000 to $145.14 million, according to city data.
Likewise, the capital budget was originally proposed at $95.31 million. After council workshops, the budget increased about $701,000 to $96.01 million, according to the data.
The budget provides a personnel budget for 646 positions, which is 9.5 more full-time positions compared to FY 2019-20. The FY 2020-21 budget includes funding for the new positions of a civil engineer, construction inspector, project manager, financial analyst and more.
Hank Dugie said the operating budget is lower is than it was in FY 2019-20 despite the city's constant growth. He said year after year, the council has worked with the city's talented staff to allocate funds where residents say they should: public safety and infrastructure.
"I think we're heading in the right direction," Dugie said.
The proposed property tax rate is $0.515 per $100 valuation, which is $0.033581 less than the FY 2019-20 rate. A second and final reading of the budget and a vote to adopt the tax rate will both occur at the council’s Sept. 8 meeting, finalizing the FY 2020-21 budget process.
