Mayor bracing for economic softening

Tuesday, Sept. 9, 1997 | 10:39 a.m.

City Finance Director George Stevens said gaming revenues in Clark County rose by 1.7 percent in fiscal year 1997, which is the smallest gain in three years.

Growth in sales tax revenues are declining, from an increase of nearly 20 percent in fiscal 1995 to 12 percent last year, Stevens said.

Deputy City Manager Steve Houchens, a former finance director for Las Vegas, said he thinks the growth will drop to the 6 to 8 percent range, depending on construction and "how business booms or doesn't boom."

Bracing for an economic slump, Jones and her city council colleagues on Monday directed staff members to identify ways to better control city spending if revenues drop.

"There's some indication there is a softening (in the local economy)," Jones said. "We want to be ready in case we hit a wall."

The city relies on sales tax revenues for 46 percent of its general fund budget, which is about $240 million this year.

Among the controls the city may implement are a computer program that tracks city purchases, and better monitoring of spending on capital projects such as parks and roads, Stevens said.

Because purchases are handled manually, Stevens said city departments often don't know what other agencies are buying. The new system will help coordinate purchases and save money, he said.

The city also may tighten its purse strings on businesses that provide services for the city, Jones said. Too often, she said, companies that submit the lowest bid for a city contract come back asking for more money.

In a related development, Jones said the city's downtown redevelopment agency may be the first department to be eliminated as part of a drive to make city hall more efficient.

Jones said a newly formed, nonprofit agency of downtown business leaders may be able to perform the functions of the redevelopment agency, which promotes development in and around downtown Las Vegas.

Monday's actions follow the city's recent hiring of a consultant group to recommend possible budget savings. Results of the first phase of the study are expected in November.