AUBURN — Filling four jobs, fixing an error with retirement payments and a $7 million decrease in property values could push a $2.2 million property tax increase, city councilors were told Monday.
Interim City Manager Don Gerrish presented his draft 2012-13 budget to the council Monday night.
It calls for filling four positions, in addition to a full-time city manager. Gerrish recommended hiring an assistant city manager, a fire chief, a land-use planner and a purchasing agent.
“My goal really is to maintain the services the city is providing,” Gerrish said. “There is change coming with a new manager and with new councilors. Lots of things will go on, so my goal was to maintain services. But I also felt I needed to address these personnel needs to maintain those services.”
Those four positions would add an additional $379,000 in salaries and benefits to the city’s spending plan.
Gerrish’ proposed budget calls for a 5.41 percent property tax collections hike, a $2.2 million increase. That would push the property tax rate to $20.52 per $1,000 of property value, an increase from $19.39 per $1,000 of property value in the current 2011-12 fiscal year. That’s an increase of about $158 on a $140,000 home.
The proposed budget calls for $32.7 million in municipal spending, up from the $31.9 million budget councilors approved last year.
Combined with a proposed $36.3 million in school spending, it represents $72.9 million in overall municipal spending.
The budget includes fixing an error the city made last year, severely underfunding the payments into the ICMA Retirement Corp. fund.
“Last year, we budgeted $9,000 and it should have been closer to $175,000,” Gerrish said. “So this year, we have to make that up. So there is about $198,000 increase in that line item.”
Auburn’s property valuation looks to decrease from $2.06 billion to $2.05 billion.
Councilors are scheduled to meet with the School Committee on Wednesday night to discuss their budgets. Councilors will begin reviewing department budgets at a special Saturday session on March 31.
CIty of Auburn FY 13 Proposed Budget as Presented 031912 – DRAFT
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