The Dillingham City Council will vote this Thursday on the city’s budget for the upcoming fiscal year. That's after several debates over the budget's introduction and a use of the mayor's tie-breaking authority.
This year's introduced budget includes a roughly 10% cut to general operations, with the intent of bringing down spending from the city's fund reserves as seen the past several years, according to city officials.
The largest cuts are roughly 60% to the animal control officer, 28% to the fire department and library, and 36% to planning.
Public works shops, public works grounds and buildings, and legal services also face reductions. Despite the addition of a new deputy manager position, the administration budget also faces a reduction of roughly 16%.
Unlike last year’s budget, no money is allocated to capital projects or equipment replacement.
But some areas do see increases: public safety administration by 21%, public safety dispatch by 13%, the senior center by 23%, and insurance by14%.
A tie-breaking vote from the mayor
Just getting the budget introduced was a challenge. Under state law, the budget must be introduced at least five days before adoption, allowing for public review. And the council has a deadline for accepting the budget – June 30.
At a June 5 council meeting, a motion to introduce the budget ordinance failed in a 3-2 vote with one member absent. Council members Kaleb Westfall and Micheal Bennett voted against the budget. They didn't give reasons during the council meeting.
The council called a special meeting last week to rescind the previous vote — essentially to change the previous decision rather than going through the process again.
During that meeting, Westfall walked out after Mayor Ruby used her authority to break a tie to approve the agenda. Westfall argued that with one council member absent, the mayor should not have the right to cast a vote because it was a 3-2 vote of members present.
City attorney Robert Palmer, present via zoom, advised otherwise. During the meeting and in a memo included in the meetings packet, Palmer said that absent members are automatically counted as “no” votes, allowing the mayor to break a 3-3 tie. This is the first time the council has used this interpretation.
When the council voted again on introducing the budget, it was split 3-3. Council members Micheal Bennet and Kaleb Westfall were absent and counted as “no” votes, and council member Kevin McCambly also voted “no.”
McCambly argued the rescission process wasn't the right way to proceed, though the attorney in attendance said it was a legal route.
The mayor again broke the tie, allowing the budget ordinance to be introduced.
Budget again pulls from city’s reserves
The city’s general fund revenue is down 3.9% from last year. The introduced budget pulls $3.7 million from the city's general fund reserves, which is something akin to the city's savings account except that the funds are often in reserves for a reason.
By regulation, the city must keep enough in reserve to maintain different departments if the city were to shut down. So, unlike a savings account, draining the fund is not an option.
Last year, the city pulled $4.9 million from the fund reserves. They brought that number down this year, but pulling such large amounts from the fund reserves can't continue into perpetuity, according to city officials.
Finance director Anita Fuller told KDLG this is the last year the city can rely so heavily on the general fund reserves to balance the budget. Next year, she says, they will likely have to cut more and find more revenue.
The City Council will meet this Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Dillingham City Council Chambers to hear public comment and vote on the budget ordinance.
If the council does not adopt a budget by June 30, the existing budget presented by the city manager will automatically be adopted.
