Fort Smith city boss outlines possible 2015 budget cuts

Ways to cut the budget and raise revenues were presented to the Fort Smith Board of Directors just hours before the Board heard about recommended outside agency funding from city coffers that support area non-profit organizations.

In all, the city received recommendations for $162,000 in outside agency funding of 25 different non-profits that will be voted on during the budget meetings upcoming in the next two weeks.

The total proposed for fiscal year 2015 has been reduced during the last two budget cycles from a total of $227,000, according to Administrative Coordinator Christy Deuster, who works in the city's finance department.

Since the information provided to the Board Monday (Nov. 10) was strictly informational, no action was taken. But eliminating outside agency funding altogether is among the proposals from City Administrator Ray Gosack sent to the Board on Monday morning. The cuts are an attempt to fully fund fire and police pension plans projected to go broke in 2019, as well as address other budgetary concerns.

Gosack's budget reduction possibilities also included cutting a total of $1.991 million from the general fund's current obligations, including $50,000 committed to the U.S. Marshals Museum, $26,000 from the convention center's budget, $57,380 from the general fund's transit obligations, eliminating the $105,000 spent on the Creekmore Park Holiday Express (lights, train operation, etc.), and an additional $299,840 from the parks and recreation budget. Gosack's proposal also included $102,260 in cuts for various administration, engineering, finance and other city office departments.

The largest cuts come from the police and fire departments, with a combined $1.186 million in cuts between the two. In the fire department, the largest cuts are in the area of overtime spending, where Gosack recommends cutting $456,750 from the fire budget.

"Reduce overtime spending by not meeting minimum staffing requirements," he wrote. "Would result in rolling brownout of fire stations – 1 station 80% of the time, 2 stations 22% of the time. This will lengthen response times in the affected areas."

The cuts in fire also include $18,500 for travel and training, which Gosack said "will affect succession planning," $35,000 for the replacement of a mechanic's 20-year-old service truck and $9,000 for replacement of a fire hose repair machine, which Gosack said could "lead to unsafe fire hoses causing injuries to fireground personnel."

In the police department, Gosack has proposed freezing 10 patrol officer positions at a cost savings of $567,120. But he said such a move eliminates "response to unconfirmed alarm calls, non-injury accidents, and low priority calls for service."

The recommended cuts in police also include one animal control officer at $45,530, "which lengthens the response time to calls for service by appox. 20%." The final cut is $53,710 for a crime analyst position, "which affects proactive response to calls for service, reduces effective public communication and the ability to reduce citizens' fear."

Gosack also proposed revenue options, including increasing the franchise fee on gas, electric, telephone and cable television from 4% to 4.25%, which would raise $412,000. Additionally, the city could take cable television franchise fees even higher to 5%, which would raise an additional $129,000.

Water, Sewer and sanitation services do not currently have franchise fees imposed on customers, but adding a 1% fee would raise $388,200 while a 4.25% fee would raise $1.65 million.

Increasing alcohol-related permits and fees could add $89,000, while increasing oak cemetery fees could raise $25,000.

Should the city approach voters about taking 5% of the penny sales tax for street and reallocating that to other purposes benefitting the general fund, Gosack said it would raise $995,000.

The largest revenue generator identified by Gosack included a business license fee which could raise $1.8 million if approved by the Board.

City Director Mike Lorenz, who said following Monday's Board study session that he had not yet read Gosack's email, noted that even though non-profit funding was presented as a recommendation to the Board, it is in no way definitely going to be funded when there are talks of freezing positions and making cuts painful cuts elsewhere in the budget.

"I have mixed feelings. In the root cause of everything with budget, we have to look at everything. Every single issue. And you have to look at every item, this one included, and say is that an absolute necessity and is it absolutely the city's place to fund any item – whether it be the non-profits or anything else? And where do you draw that line? … I think we have to have a serious discussion about is that the city's position? Should we be in the position of helping charities and how do you make that decision of which ones?"

The first night of budget meetings will be Thursday (Nov. 13) at 6 p.m. at the Fort Smith Police Department's community room located 100 South 10th Street.

Link here for a (large) PDF file of Gosack's memo.