The City of Fulton's 2020 budget is up for a final reading and vote during Tuesday evening's city council meeting.
"As 2019 draws to a close, it is satisfying to reflect on the things accomplished during the year," City Administrator Bill Johnson wrote in the budget's intro. "Ahead are new challenges and projects for which the city stands ready to face, all in effort to meet the needs of the community, and to ensure Fulton remains a vibrant place to live, work and visit."
City officials have been hard at work finalizing the budget, which projects $45,947,610 in revenue and $45,832,867 in expenditures. Here's an overview of 2020's budget and how it compares to the previous year's. The full budget is available for viewing at Fulton City Hall.
This year's budget is balanced, as required by the city charter, and projects a $114,743 surplus.
The city's revenue comes from a number of funding streams. The electric fund makes up the largest chunk at $15,277,200, or 33.2 percent. Though that's about $405,000 more than last year, the electric fund actually makes up a slightly lower percentage of the total revenue than it did last in 2019, when it accounted for 36.9 percent.
The general fund is next, at 30 percent, followed by the gas fund (11.9 percent) and wastewater fund (7 percent). Other funds account for 4 percent or less apiece of the revenue (golf course, internal service, solid waste, water, parking/airport and capital project funds). The golf course is expected to bring in $596,200, about $17,000 more than it did in 2019.
The general fund includes money from sales and other tax, property tax, licenses, fines permits, grants and charges for services. It brings in about $13,799,650. In turn, it pays for public safety (police and fire, $3,926,003), public works ($2,618,875), general administration ($2,473,094) and parks and recreation ($4,702,285).
General revenue expenditures this year are estimated to total $13,720,257, dwarfing last year's expenditure of $9,627,673. Most of that increase is due to parks and recreation's massive budget increase. Thanks to the recreation center construction project approved this year and now underway in Veterans Park, the department's budget has more than sextupled. Last year, it was a mere $708,731.
The recreation center will cost an estimated $8.89 million to complete (see article: bit.ly/34FNbAE). The intention, according to city officials, is to largely fund it from the half-cent sales tax passed in 2016 for the purpose of paying for parks and recreation projects. That tax brought in about $412,500 in 2019, according to the budget.
Capital projects
The budget document highlights several other planned improvement projects.
The electric department is receiving a new 60-foot bucket truck, budgeted at $250,000. Its current tallest bucket truck only reaches 45 feet. Tower maintenance in the water department will cost about $335,000. The wastewater department's efforts to reduce inflow and infiltration in the sewage system is receiving a $600,000 boost (see article: bit.ly/34FNlYM). The municipal airport is receiving a new bank of hangars ($740,000) while the solid waste department will receive a new front-loading truck for $270,000.
Energy revenue
The City of Fulton has 4,471 electric customers paying about $4.8 million and 898 commercial customers paying $4.1 million. Large power customers total nine and are projected to pay $3.82 million while 17 industrial customers will pay $1.7 million. "Other" power customers total 133, and rural customers total 62.
The city has 3,293 residential gas customers paying $1.89 million, 15 industrial customers paying $1.25 million and 573 commercial customers paying $1.98 million. Four other categories pay a combined total of $216,000. Total revenue from gas is expected to increase by about $123,000 in 2020.
Taxes
Following a dip from 2017-18, 2020' expected real estate and personal property tax revenue is expected to rise to $700,000 from 2019's adopted budget pre-audit $665,000. The city's cigarette, gas and motor vehicle sales tax amounts remain relatively stable. So does the expected revenues from the 1 percent general sales tax, at $1.65 million. In total, the city expects to collect $5,129,700 in taxes in 2020, up from $5,061,950 (adopted, pre-audit) in 2019.
Personnel
Proposed wages are $578,643, compared to $541,647 in 2019. Health insurance costs are expected to increase to $42,066 from $33,768 in 2019. In total, the city's personnel costs are expected to increase by $53,164 to $749,593.