May 7, 2015Fy-15-16 Mayors budgetPublic Hearing comments:Ken Joyner ResidentForward message - The mayors FY16 proposed budget as presented by the Management & budget office attempts to convince Alders and city taxpayers that this budget reduces spending by $2.2M while maintain the mill rate at 41.55.The following summary dispels that notion and displays how a proposed tax reduction is actually a tax increase, while superficially using debt service and fee increases as the conduit for this deception. Budget topics:1. General fund - the total proposed mayors general fund budget is estimated to be $506 Million dollars (pg.1-5). The estimated income from city sources is $294.7M.

The estimated income from state aid is $211.3M sources.

The estimated mill rate is said to be flat at 41.55 mills (pg 1-19).

Facts in dispute:The mayors state aid revenue estimates for both FY15 ($213,263) is inaccurate according to the state dept of OPM, OFA, and CCM and the city office of budget& management (see reconciliation summary FY 14-15, Presented to this committee on or about March 27th.).

The mayors revenue estimates for proposed FY 16 ($211,354) is also inaccurate according to the Governors Biennium 16-17 budget, the appropriation committees revisions, the State Republican partys budget and OFA.

Both the governor and the appropriation committee is maintaining state aid to municipalities, including ECS & alliance districts as well as, statutory grants to municipalities flat, as compared to governors FY 15 budget. Total state aid as of today is estimated by state sources to be $219,757M and not $211,354 as the mayor estimates.The undeniable fiscal truth is that the citys revenue and expenditures are inaccurate for the current FY 15 and remains so in spite of the many calls for revision since August 2014. As a result the FY16 budget, which is estimated against the revenue and expenditures of the FY15 budget, (and after 10 months expended), is also inaccurate in comparison to itself and to that of the state of CT. Budget proposals to date.

The Mayors budget proposes to add twenty-five new positions at of cost of $1.4M, while at the same time, attempting to back credit a savings of $815K through the reduction of 10 police LT. Positions, positions which were already taken as a savings in the current FY 15 budget. To compound this error, the city budget continues to credit itself a savings of $1.6M for vacancy savings. If the city has a $1.6M savings in vacancies, why is it necessary to incur another $1.4M in new position hiring? (See dept 402 on pg 1-18 budget book.)

2. Debt Service: Line item 602 (See pg 1-13.)

Debt service allocation over the past three years has risen from $66 to $70 to the proposed $65M. 9 (See pg. 1-13 4-30). At the same time, new bond fund request have gone up from $33M in 13/14, to $44M in FY15, to a proposed $55M for FY 16.

The debt service payments in turn have been reduced by $4.5M in FY 11/12, $3M in FY 13, $4M in FY 15, a refunding bond of $14.5M, in FY14/15 and a proposed $5M reduction for FY 16.

The last four years the city has increased taxes for debt service payment, followed by a reduction of that payment at year end close out, in order to pay GF deficit spending.

In FY14/15 the city Refinanced series B bonds, rather than place the savings back into bonds as required by the charter, they instead, paid the $14,504,319 refund bond proceeds to medical benefits insurance, self insurance fund, and the rainy day fund.

In the M&B FY 16 budget summary overview on march 19th. They falsely claims the debt service savings ($4.9M) for this year is resulting from the 14/15 refunded bonds. However, budget transfer#131-15-1, BOA approved 27-0- WITH 3 absent, dated 12-01-14, clearly shows the entire bonds had been obligated in FY 14/15.

3. Attn: To: Capital budget line items. 502 Engineering department: The citys infrastructures such as street paving, sidewalk repair, complete streets is in disrepair. The city engineering dept estimates New Haven has 510 miles of streets. They estimate the repair rate is 1.2 miles this year (See pg 3-66). The engineering departments side walk bond fund is $1.8m; street reconstruction bond is $600K.

4. Attn: To: Capital budget line items. 501 Public Works department: Public work dept. is bonded for side walk rehabilitation at $600K, pavement streets management at $1.9M (state LOCIP funds) (see pg 4-7). With more than five hundred miles of streets and the ability to only repave nine streets per year, it would take the city more than 40 years to come full circle to street #1.This illustration demonstrates the need for the city to committee greater resources to streets in sidewalks through the city. I recommend that the bond funds of both departments be combined into one, and an additional $20M in repetitive dept line items be discontinued for two years and diverted to infrastructure repair.

5. Permits, Licenses and user fees:Dept. 202 Fire dept. The fire dept enjoys a total FY 16 budget of $30,072,251, an $840K increase. (pg.1-13). the fire dept is currently exceeding its budget by ($4,264,551), (April monthly report pg. 2) mostly through overtime. To help compensate for this overspending the fire dept is raising taxes and fees on New Haven residents by $5,230 (see pg. 7-9) although their FY15 revenue is only minus ($25K) (see April monthly report pg.6.)

The Park Dept for the third straight year is once again attempting to raise entry fees on New Haven residents on week days, weekends and holidays. The dept overall is raising fees by $4,177(pg. 7-14-15) even though, the parks is only minus $35,000 for the FY year 15. The park dept is requesting with the mayors approval $8.672, 304 in total funds (GF, capital and special funds).

Clearly these requests are unsupported by the facts outlined on the pages referenced above, therefore, since these tax increases fly in the face of the Mayors contention that there will be NO TAX Increase, the Alders should deny the request based on the incontrovertible evidence reveled in this budget.

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