FONDA - Recent figures from the Montgomery County Treasurer's office indicate an estimated $11.1 million budget gap that county officials will have to tame before they can pass the 2011 budget.
With that in mind, Florida town Supervisor William Strevy on Tuesday at the full Board of Supervisors meeting opened a discussion of possible legislation that would prevent the county's budget officer from using fund balance to balance the budget this year.
Strevy said the intention of the resolution would be to highlight the severity of the county's financial condition.
"What I'm asking is that the tentative budget be prepared by the budget officer without using fund balance so that taxpayers can see how difficult the situation is that we're in," Strevy said Wednesday afternoon.
He said he will introduce the legislation at the next month's Finance Committee meeting.
"I did see a whisper of support from my colleagues, but I don't think anybody likes what the truth of the matter will be," Strevy said. "It's going to be a rude awakening for many people."
At the July Finance Committee meeting, County Treasurer and Budget Officer Shawn Bowerman presented supervisors with new figures that added $3.6 million to the already $7.5 million budget gap that supervisors were expecting - that's an $11.1 million budget gap. He brought to their attention increased expected spending in 2011 on retirement costs, debt payments, medicaid and contractual obligations. The biggest hit to the county would be the $1.4 million hole left if the federal government pulled its Federal Medical Assistance Percentages for 2011.
If county officials use no fund balance to offset the $11.1 million, taxpayers can expect about a 44 percent tax increase, Bowerman said.
But Bowerman said the legislation looks like a way to blame him for tax increases if the supervisors can't agree on a budget and it reverts to his tentative budget.
Bowerman has repeatedly said it's not his job to cut services. That duty belongs to the lawmakers, he said.
"I do not agree with this resolution at all," Bowerman said Tuesday at the meeting. "If this board does not have the guts to make cuts, they'll pass the buck to the budget officer."
Bowerman said Wednesday afternoon his goal is to keep the fund balance, which contains about $10 million now, from dropping below $5 million as he prepares the tentative budget.
"My gut feeling is that some on the board would want it to go down more," Bowerman said. "Some of them want a 0.0 percent tax increase, and I don't feel that's realistic."
Glen Supervisor Lawrence Coddington brought to light at Tuesday's full board meeting the county's history of raising taxes double digit percentages and then offsetting tax increases with large appropriations from the fund balance the next year. It's a "roller coaster" ride he would like to end, he said.
Strevy agreed.
"In the past, we've put the fund balance toward the budget to balance it and I think we should get away from using that as a funding cushion," Strevy said.
Amanda Whistle covers Montgomery County news. She can be reached at montco@leaderherald.com.