Final Lake City Budget Hearing Yields No Surprises: City in good financial shape
Posted September 17, 2013 6:50 am
Lake City's Director of Finance, Donna Duncan, makes the
final budget presentation of the year.
LAKE CITY, FL – Last night Lake City had its final budget hearing. What some folks thought were shaky financial practices in the past have passed with City Manager Wendell Johnson at the City's helm and Donna Duncan, the City's Director of Financer at the financial helm of Lake City. Smart financing and refinancing of the City's debt and sound financial practices have left Lake City in good financial shape and with enough money to give all City employees a 3% cost of living allowance (COLA) this year.
Lake City's legendary City Attorney Herbert Darby reads
the FY2014 budget resolution into the record.
The City's tax rate is the same as it was last year and according to Ms. Duncan the City will be collecting about $5,000 less than it did last year.
Ms. Duncan said revenue from other sources is up a little bit this year. "Utility taxes are up just a little bit, about $100,000, but other than that revenues are about the same or a little bit less than they were last year," she said.
The City Council, pleased with City Manager Johnson's results at the helm, has awarded him 40 extra hours of paid leave time.
After the meeting, City Manager Johnson told the Observer, "Stew, every week I work at least 50 hours."