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October 27,2010 <br /> For the last seven years,we have approached each annual budget with <br /> an eye toward the future.Our disciplined approach to financial <br /> management when times were good has now placed us in a better <br /> position to continue to weather this economic downturn. <br /> Examples include: <br /> •Maintaining compliance with our fund balance policy,which <br /> requires that we preserve a fund balance equal to 20 percent of the <br /> revenue forecast <br /> •Reducing debt ahead of schedule <br /> •Cash-funding targe'ed capital investments that will serve our <br /> communky well for years to come,rather than increasing operating <br /> casts by issuing debt <br /> •Funding reserves with under expendkures <br /> •Controlling labor costs through negotiating revisions to the self- <br /> insured employee health plan <br /> Even so,the economic crisis remains wph us.This recession is unlike <br /> those of our past experience in both the depth to which the economy has <br /> fallen and its resistance to federal recovery efforts. <br /> Our 2011 General Government revenue budget is just under$109 million. <br /> This is down nearly$6.3 million horn our total receipts for 2008. <br /> Revenues actually began to decline in mid 2008,which means that we <br /> have been coping with the effects of this recession for more than two <br /> years now.Hardest hit has been sales tax revenue,which is the most <br /> sensitive to Fluctuations in the economy. <br /> While the National Bureau of Economic Research declared an end to the <br /> recession in June of 2009,the sluggish recovery continues to put an <br /> enormous strain on government,businesses,and individuals. <br /> In response to our diminished resources,we continue to tighten our belt <br /> with a proposed budget that requires departments to work with less.We <br /> 298 <br />