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City sets general fund budget at $1,833,000; levy to increase 20.7%
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By Charlie Warner
Argus News Editor
The Caledonia City Council approved the 2010 budget and levy during the Dec. 7 council meeting.
The general fund budget will be $1,833,353, which is a 5.5 percent increase over the 2009 general fund budget.
The property tax levy was increased from $391,830 in 2009 to $499,266 for 2010. The levy increase was 20.7 percent.
The levy increase is somewhat deceiving, as the city council decided to take advantage of a one-time offer by the state to recoup $101,364 in local government aid (LGA) Gov. Tim Pawlenty withheld through unallotment over the past two years.
Without the special unallotment levy and the increase in the city’s indebtedness levy, the general fund levy for 2010 is actually about $16,000 less than 2009.
The city council spent two long work sessions hammering out a very bare-bones budget. Over the course of the two sessions, they cut more than $412,000 in department requests.
“This has been a definite struggle to get to this point,” Mayor Bob Burns said. “There will be no wage increases for non-union employees and we have eliminated many department head requests. By doing this, we hope we have positioned ourselves in case the state decides to cut our LGA again this year. We hope even if there are LGA cuts we won’t have to begin furloughing employees. There’s a little bit of padding in there, a small reserve to help cope with LGA cuts.
Burns was referring to the general fund surplus the council decided to include in the 2010 budget, which is about $33,500.
Even with the 27.4 percent increase in the 2010 levy, Caledonia still has the lowest per capita levy of any city in Houston County at $214.63 and that’s using the 2009 levy figures for the other cities, which will obviously see increases in 2010.
Caledonia’s 2010 levy per capita compared to 2009 levy per capita figures for Houston County cities
Caledonia $214.63
Brownsville $221.65
Spring Grove $354.49
La Crescent $372.21
Eitzen $403.45
Houston $423.12
Hokah $524.47
According to figures provided by City Accountant Stephanie Mann, Caledonia’s 2010 levy per capita figure is lower than all but one city in the area.
Caledonia’s 2010 levy per capita compared to 2009 levy per capita figures for area cities:
St. Charles $194.63
Caledonia $214.63
Brownsville $221.65
Spring Valley $347.04
Spring Grove $354.49
Rushford $358.50
La Crescent $372.21
Lewiston $379.19
Eitzen $403.45
Chatfield $403.83
Houston $423.12
Preston $454.48
Hokah $524.47
Lanesboro $526.11
Harmony $526.41
Former City Councilman Gary Klug, who attended the meeting urged the council to consider the senior citizens who are living on fixed incomes.
“They’re trying to cope with everything else going up and now their taxes will be going up too,” Klug said.
It was explained to Klug that this was a one-time opportunity for the city to recoup the LGA it had lost over the past two years.
“If we don’t do it now, we just lose the money,” Burns said. “I really doubt if the state is going to let us do this again.”
A motion by Burns and seconded by Councilwoman Peggy Perry to approve the 2010 budget was unanimously approved.
A motion by Burns and seconded by Councilman Tom Murphy to approve the 20.7 percent levy increase was unanimously approved.
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