- Charlottesville Mayor Dave Norris said local citizens should not be concerned about the report, as it only reflects current council choices. Photo by Nadia Minai.
The findings, presented at Monday's City Council meeting, show that the budget gap between expenditures and revenues could reach $8 million during the next six years - breaking the $156 million mark in expenditures by 2016.
Charlottesville Mayor Dave Norris said the forecast does not present a dire concern for the city because the law requires city budgets to be balanced annually.
"Every year, the council makes tough decisions about revenues and about expenditures," Norris said. "Even though we're in the middle of the worst economic situation since the Great Depression, we've been able to balance the city's budget without having to slash basic services or increase taxes."
Norris said the report merely represents choices the council has made for expenditures down the road - choices that are likely to change. This sentiment was echoed by Leslie Beauregard, director of Charlottesville's Office of Budget and Performance Management.
"These really are just forecasts," Beauregard said. "We put [the reports] out there because we want to try to plan the future. These are things that are not necessarily going to happen, but things that
we think could happen."
Basic requirements such as health care, retirement plans and raises for employees add to the increases in spending each year, Beauregard said. Contributions to various agencies, regional jails and communication centers are also obligatory, leading to little to no flexibility within the budget.
Ric Barrick, director of communications for the City of Charlottesville, said unfunded state and federal mandates are also agents in driving budgets higher and higher each year.
"There are a number of factors leading to [higher spending], including reduced revenue from decreases in property levels and a decrease in revenue-sharing funding from the county," he said.
But Barrick and Beauregard both stressed the good work the city has done in protecting service-level issues - that is, those which directly impact citizens.
"We're very lucky that we haven't had to dig too deep into those issues, such as closing library branches or reducing bus routes," Beauregard said. "We're not at that level yet, and we've been lucky we haven't had to have that conversation."
Barrick agreed with Beauregard's assessment.
"We've cut just about everything we could cut, but if future revenues are down, we will most likely have some very tough choices," Beauregard said.
In recent years, the city has saved money and balanced budgets by increasing departmental efficiency, Beauregard said, deferring long-term projects and making simple adjustments to health care plans and benefits packages.
The result has turned out to be a double-edged sword.
"We have done a great job of living within our means," Barrick said. "But we have done so without increasing staff salaries or size."
Norris outlined ideas the council has planned that will curb spending while providing the Charlottesville community with worthwhile services.
"We know, for instance, that investments in early childhood education can save the community a lot of money down the line," Norris said. "Same goes for crime prevention. Stopping problems from happening is much more cost-effective than dealing with problems head-on."
Norris also stressed the need to resist temptation to take on a lot of new programs and expenditures. "We've been able to do creative things despite the tightening economic situation, despite the fact we haven't been flush with taxpayer money the last couple years - providing new youth programs, expanding affordable housing options and investing in parkland acquisition and renewable energies"
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