|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
I am pleased to present the proposed comprehensive budget and five-year Capital Improvement Program for fiscal year 2022-2023.
When we started this process, I had four main goals to accomplish. The first was to involve the City Commission in developing the priorities for this next fiscal year. Through individual meetings between the Commission and our administrative team, we freely discussed what the goals were for the future of our City. Their message was clear, and the recurring theme included public safety and reducing our millage rate.
The second goal was to thoroughly involve the staff in this process. Every department was directed to look at their budget from a fresh perspective, prioritizing needs over wants, and every department head was provided the tools they needed to get to work and submit a comprehensive, responsible budget. This was followed by one-on-one meetings with each department and my office to review their submissions. We scrutinized each division, cut where possible and added where necessary.
“Fiscal responsibility is at the forefront of our entire management team. The phrase”
The third goal was to develop a budget that remained fiscally responsible, lowered the millage rate, and ensured that our residents continue to receive the high-quality services that they expect while fulfilling the initiatives set by the Commission. This budget achieves these goals. The filing of the budget reflects an assessed value that has increased by $1.1 billion from last year, and we have a budget that reduces the millage rate to 2.0 mils per $1,000 of assessed value. This has resulted in an unprecedented 10th year our City has lowered the tax rate.
Fiscal responsibility is at the forefront of our entire management team. The phrase “do more with less” has been felt by every department these past few years where they had to do more work with less staff. We are fortunate to have a dedicated team that has kept the wheels turning throughout the pandemic and the aftermath that has left us all working in unprecedented times and conditions. As we continue to navigate this post-pandemic world, we developed a budget that is conservative on our revenues and hopeful in our expenses.
And finally, the fourth, and to me, most important goal, remains to be fully transparent.
When I took this position, I promised to be fully transparent in my decisions and actions. I worked closely with the Commission, the Finance Department and City staff to present an honest and manageable budget. This budget advances our initiatives in sustainability, innovation, safety, and quality.
We listened to the residents through public outreach and surveys and worked closely with our Commission and staff to deliver this fully transparent, thorough, and comprehensive budget that fulfills several initiatives as proposed by our community in a cost-effective and fiscally responsible manner.
There are currently seven approved development projects, four of which are under construction. There was also one project completed, which added 320 residential units. All of these projects contribute to our increased revenue. The revenue for the fiscal year 2022-2023 General Fund is $47,899,558, which represents an increase of $7,289,215, or 17.9%, from the fiscal year 2021-2022 adopted budget. The adjacent pie chart displays the percentage of revenues by source. The proposed General Fund budget expenditures (not including transfers out to other funds) increased to $44,461,238, which represents an increase of $1,875,658 from fiscal year 2021-2022. The pie chart below shows the percentage of expenditures and fund balance by type.
Our 2022-2023 fiscal year budget is one that is presented with transparency and represents our meetings with elected officials, as well as, members of the public to ensure that their needs and requests were heard. Our goal is to maintain fiscal responsibility while providing the utmost level of high-quality services our residents and visitors have come to expect. This work could not have been accomplished without the input and vision of the Mayor, Vice Mayor and Commissioners, the direction of our Finance Director, Tiffany Neely, and the Finance Department, and our department directors. On behalf of Deputy City Manager Susan Simpson and Assistant City Manager Audra Curts-Whann, we express our sincere thanks and gratitude.
To read City Manager Stan Morris’ complete Fiscal Year 2022-2023 Budget Message, visit sibfl.net/budgetmessage22-23. Contact City Manager Stan Morris at smorris@sibfl.net or 305.792.1701.
To see more #Miaminews from #Aventura to #Coralgables to #SouthMiami, #Pinecrest, #Palmetto Bay and #Cutler Bay and all throughout #Miamidadecounty go to:
www.communitynewspapers.com
