Minutes 04/19/1994 - Laserfiche WebLink

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ADrll 19, ~994 The Municipal Finance Co=mission continues to recommend achieving a fund balance of about $11 million. Today our fund balance is a little more than $7 million. In the recommended budget, I am continuing this effort by increasing the fund balance reserve by'S400,000. Although this represents only a modest increase, it is very important that we demonstrate our resolve of fiscal responsibility to the bond rating agencies and the investing public. MANDATES The Mayor, in her recent State of the City message, emphasized the impact of unfunded mandates on our locality. I rank unfunded mandates as the major issue in intergovernmental relations. State and Federal governments routinely set policies and then pass on the responsibility and cost of implementation to localities. Unlike the Federal government, our City can not operate at a deficit. Unlike the Federal and State governments, our City does:not have a broad tax base. We must rely on a limited property tax base, much of which is tax exempt because it is Federally owned. Accordingly, I propose that legislative relief from the burden of unfunded mandates should continue to be the City's highest legislative priority, and I intend to vigorously pursue this goal through the State and Federal~law making process. CONCLUSION Our efforts to appropriately-address the fiscal and financial situation in our City will only be successful by knowing what we are doing, knowing when that is not enough, and accepting the hard work and tOugh,decisions necessary to realize our purpose. As a new model ~of,what an older city can be, step by Step, our challenges continue...." On motion meeting was adjourned at'5:30 p~m. APPROVED -~ -' ~ -'" Mayor *Councilman Bernard D. Griffin, Sr. /A~E Ci4ry Clerk arr~ed, at 5: 05 p.m.