$122.8 MILLION BUDGET OK'D RETIREMENT COSTS, PAY PACTS TO TAKE BIG BITE.Byline: Alex Dobuzinskis Staff Writer BURBANK - The City Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to approve a $122.8 million budget for the coming fiscal year, which is subsidized sub·si·dize tr.v. sub·si·dized, sub·si·diz·ing, sub·si·diz·es 1. To assist or support with a subsidy. 2. To secure the assistance of by granting a subsidy. by $348,000 from a retirement fund stabilization Stabilization The action undertakes a country when it buys and sells its own currency to protect its exchange value. Actions registered competitive traders undertake by on the NYSE to meet the exchange requirement that 75% of their traded be stabilizing, meaning that sell orders account to help plug a budget gap. The new budget represents a $7 million increase over the current year's budget. But budgeting remained tight because of anticipated pay increases in upcoming collective bargaining agreements The contractual agreement between an employer and a Labor Union that governs wages, hours, and working conditions for employees and which can be enforced against both the employer and the union for failure to comply with its terms. and ballooning retirement fund costs. ``That's really the two major, primary drivers resulting in increased expenditures,'' said Justin Hess, deputy financial services The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page. director. The council, which held a public hearing on the budget last week, approved it with little discussion Tuesday. The fiscal year begins July 1. After asking departments to cut their spending an average of 1 percent and increasing the airport parking tax and several city fees, the city was still left with a $348,000 shortfall in its $122.8 million general fund budget. Because increased retirement fund costs contributed to the shortfall, the city took $348,000 from a savings account Savings Account A deposit account intended for funds that are expected to stay in for the short term. A savings account offers lower returns than the market rates. Notes: used to cushion the blow of retirement cost spikes spikes see peplomer. to close the budget gap. The city also reassigned $35,000 from its savings - which was going to be used to pay for a new soccer field - to give to the school district to begin replacing the track and athletic field grass at John Burroughs and Burbank high schools Burbank High School may refer to:
While departments will cut their budgets by 1 percent for the coming fiscal year, this year they endured a 2 percent to 4 percent cut, and the year before, it was 10 percent. Those cuts compound themselves, Hess said. ``It probably wasn't as severe as the previous years when we asked for larger cuts,'' Hess said. ``But because of the budget discrepancies, cuts are more difficult to achieve than back in the day when the cushion was bigger.'' Mayor Jef Vander Borght took the opportunity of the budget vote to extend his concern for Financial Services Director Derek Hanway, who oversaw o·ver·saw v. Past tense of oversee. the budget planning as he battled with cancer. ``For Mr. Hanway, who is the director of the department who is battling an illness, we wish him well and our prayers are with him,'' Vander Borght said. Alex Dobuzinskis, (818) 546-3304 alex.dobuzinskis(at)dailynews.com |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion