Stewart Budgets One Time Revenue and School Funding

Republican Mayor Erin Stewart has submitted a budget that appears to use one time revenue to keep taxes level and pass a state grant on the city schools.

Stewart’s budget plan appears to rely heavily on one-time revenue. Her budget would transfer $2 million from the city’s fund balance and another $2.9 from other funds, use $3.5 million from ban/bond premiums and count on $2.5 million in sale of property.

While Stewart’s budget would keep the city property tax mill rate at 50.50, her budget still anticipates $2.8 million more in tax revenue than the current year budget.

Keeping the mill rate the same for the upcoming budget year appears to mean that current year property taxes will have increased by $26 million under the six years of Stewart’s administration.

Stewart’s budget plan reportedly transfers to the school system the money from a grant that the state provides to the city to support special education. That grant is budgeted by the city for $3.1 million in the current year, money that would, reportedly, now be passed on the school district.

The change would partially offset the years in which the city, under Stewart, did not provide an increase in education funding. Stewart’s budget plan for the upcoming year appears to leave her administration’s support for local schools increasing less than one percent per year over the six years of her administration.

The funds would provide an increase in funding for city’s schools for the upcoming budget year. But the plan appears to only increase support for local schools one year, since the grant would likely be a similar amount for years going forward.

However, because the state special education grant is based on the actual special education expenses of the school district, it is difficult to predict what the actual amount of funding the schools would receive.

Stewart’s budget would take effect for the budget year that begins July 1, 2019 and continues to June 30, 2020 and would set the mill rate that would set property tax levels for tax bills due in July of this year and January of 2020.

The City Charter provides that the City Council will hold at least one public hearing on Stewart’s budget plan.