Budget Updates 2022

A budget update in two parts…

Budget Update Part I

This Wednesday Council voted 8-1 to pass the FY23 budget after several weeks of presentations and deliberations.

I've included the official top level information on the budget vote at the end of this note, but I think it's also important to focus not just on the dollars, but on what this budget funds.

I'm proud that it includes significant new cyber security efforts across the City with a focus on police and fire.

I'm proud that it continues our increased investment in paving and sidewalk improvements.

I'm proud that it funds life and safety improvements with a new ambulance team to reduce call times.

I'm proud that it eliminates library fines in line with what is becoming national practice.

I'm proud that it continues investments in recreation programs.

I'm proud that it funds our efforts to be a leader in stormwater management and protect the health of our community and waterways.

I'm proud that it invests in public education.

I'm proud that it does not require the elimination of positions in either the City or the Schools.

I'm also proud of the process improvements we continue to make in our materials and deliberations. I forsee more going forward as well, particularly around timing and content of deliberative documents.

I'll share more in a separate post about my general reflections, but as always, I appreciate everyone's input even if I'm unable to respond to every email or call I receive. I take this role very seriously, but it's time spent on top of work and family demands, and there are only so many hours in the day. Please don't hesitate to reach out and I will continue to do my best to respond.

Thank you all for engaging in this process.

"The City Council adopted the City of Dover’s fiscal year 2023 budget by an 8 to 1 vote during a special meeting on Wednesday, May 4, 2022.

The final adopted budget is $180 million, a $17.2 million, or 10.6%, over the current fiscal year budget. The general fund portion of the budget is $140,134,191, a $9,620,087, or 7.4%, increase above the current fiscal year budget. The adopted general fund portion of the budget is $3,173,706 above the amount allowed by the tax cap, requiring a two-thirds vote by the City Council to adopt.

The estimated tax rate resulting from the adopted budget is $22.46, a 76-cent, or 3.5% increase above the current tax rate. The state Department of Revenue Administration will certify the official tax rate later this year."

To estimate the impact on your taxes, multiply the rate above on your home assessment and divide by 1000. Make sure you use your City assessment value, not estimated values from real estate sites. This calculation will just be an estimate as the final rates set by the state in the fall.

Budget Update Part II

I want to take another minute to thank everyone who shared their views with City Council during this budget season. I take very seriously all the input I receive when making my decisions. Passing a budget that includes a tax increase was not an easy decision despite what some folks assume about my intentions.

My view on the tax cap (see previous posts/blog) do not mean I am scheming to find ways to raise taxes.

It means I advocate for having hard conversations about what each Department needs.

It means I weigh every expense on its merit.

It means I think very carefully about the range of demands each taxpayer and resident in our city faces and what they can afford.

It means I reflect on the wide range of income levels and property values across this community.

It means I don't judge people on their motivations and views.

It also means I ask that folks not judge my motivation and views nor assume that my decisions are a foregone conclusion.

I tell my students two things that I've been thinking a lot about since our vote on Wednesday night.

First, I talk often about how budgets are the physical manifestation of policy. You can have all the greatest ideas in the world, but if you don't have money to implement them, you don't have policy. As Councilors, our job is to weigh the input of Department heads and City and School leadership along with the input of residents and come to a decision we feel is best for all. We are the policy making (and budget decision-making) body in this community.

Second, I talk with my students about ways to judge the success of a negotiation. Every Council meeting and in particular the budget process is a form of negotiation. There are hard bargaining approaches that often lead to win-lose outcomes and there are mutual gains approaches that can lead to win-win situations. We can judge the outcome on dollar values or activities funded, but we can also judge them on changes in relationships and improvements in process. I think our discussions and debates over the past few weeks and on Wednesday continued our slow and steady progress to improve dialog and the information available to make decisions. I also ask my students to think about judging possible agreements by focusing not on whether they like a particular agreement, but whether they can live with it. You don't have to like an outcome to be able to agree with it. I don't like that we raised taxes, but I can live with my decision.

More broadly I've been working to increase the transparency of and improve processes around budget decisions since I was first elected in 2017. It might not be the most glamorous topic but the materials we use to communicate with the public and make decisions and the processes we use to come to decisions matter. This has included a lot of behind the scenes discussions and small tweaks to process that I hope will have lasting impact with more hopefully to come.

Clear lines of communication with the School Board and School Administrators don't mean they drive our decisions any more than the Fire Chief or Recreation Director. We weigh all the input we receive and work to make careful decisions. We only have top line budget authority when it comes to School budgets and School contracts - the content of how those funds are used rests solely with those elected to the School Board based on our firm of government here in Dover. We also trust the leadership of the City and School Departments to use their expertise and professional judgements to make the best decisions they can to use taxpayer funds wisely.

Budgets are complicated and simple all at the same time. People feel strongly about what government should and shouldn't do. People feel strongly about their taxes and how they are spent. No one on Council takes that lightly. We are all doing the best we can to move our community forward.