Takeaways from Tallahassee City Commission's final budget workshop: tax, raises, more

There's good news for Tallahassee residents, as of the city commission's final budget workshop: Your city property tax rate isn't going up.

However, the city is still expected to pull in millions more with rising property values, which means it is still considered a tax increase under state law.

That was the highlight from last week's meeting, in which commissioners also learned that the city's 2025 budget would be a balanced one with no deficits, and that they could create a "storm response and debris removal" fund, similar to one at the county.

Now, commissioners will hold two public hearings on the proposed $1 billion spending plan before taking a final vote on it in September.

Here are the main takeaways from last week's discussion:

Property tax rate to remain the same

Commissioners voted 3-2 on a tentative property tax rate of $4.45 for every $1,000 of property value, with Mayor John Dailey and Commissioners Curtis Richardson and Dianne Williams-Cox voting in favor of the rate and Commissioners Jeremy Matlow and Jack Porter voting no.

Last year, the commission voted 3-2 in favor of increasing the property tax rate from $4.10 for every $1,000 of property value to the final approved $4.45, meaning the current rate could stay the same.

The city says it's expecting $72.7 million in property tax revenue, nearly a $6.6 million increase from the last fiscal year, caused by the increase in the city's taxable property value.

Matlow and Porter said they would like to see a possible rollback of the tax rate or budget cuts on "unnecessary spending." Matlow specifically said he would like to see a reduction in "non-essential travel, food, sponsorships and political advertisements."

The others said any cuts could mean a reduction in the level of service the city provides residents when it comes to things such as parks and recreation. Richardson said he would not go back to his constituents and tell parents that the "fees they pay for their children to participate in programs and services" would have to go up.

Finally, a balanced budget

When commissioners met in April, Director of Resource Management Robert Wigen reported a $3.8 million deficit in the budget. As of last week, Wigen was "pleased to report" they were forecasting a balanced budget and a balanced general fund at $210 million.

The benefits of a balanced budget means revenues the city receives will be used to fund ongoing expenditures, all the city's bills will be paid, and the city is set for continued financial sustainability.

Some of the expenditures planned from the general fund for the coming fiscal year will be parks, recreation and neighborhood affairs, public infrastructure and community safety initiatives such as gun violence mitigation.

A 'Storm Response and Debris Removal fund'

In the month since the May 10 tornadoes, the city has picked up 800,000 cubic yards of debris, spent $50 million on responding to damage and removing debris, and reported that nearly 80,000 city electric customers lost power after that storm.

President Biden declared the capital region's May 10 storms and tornadoes to be a major disaster, with FEMA applications opening Thursday morning.

As the city recovers and anticipates a highly active hurricane season, staff offered an option to begin looking into the possibility of a "Storm Response and Debris Removal fund" as a way to take the spending burden off the general fund and city reserves. City Manager Reese Goad said debris clean-up was "in excess of what we've experienced."

There weren't many details but staff said they'll soon determine next steps to create such a pool of money.

Remaining competitive in employee wages

Also in the works is an across-the-board raise for all city employees, including the city manager and city attorney.

The city is looking at a recommended 4.2% raise for all employees, with a minimum pay increase of $1,500, meaning a minimum pay of $17 an hour.

What's next

? The city will have two public hearings on the 2025 budget: Sept. 11 and Sept. 25.

Arianna Otero is the City Solutions Reporter for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact her via email at [email protected] or on Twitter/X: @ari_v_otero.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: City of Tallahassee final budget workshop: What you need to know