LV City Council to hold hearing on new budget

Dan Kulin

Monday, May 16, 2005 | 9:47 a.m.

Las Vegas residents will get a chance to weigh in Tuesday on the city's nearly $1.2 billion proposed budget for the coming fiscal year, which includes plans to add staff, but calls for no tax increases.

The City Council is expected to vote on the proposed budget following the 9 a.m. Tuesday public hearing.

The proposed budget for the 2005-2006 fiscal year, which begins July 1, calls for adding 58 jobs and cutting nine positions that are not currently filled. It includes a $482.9 million general fund budget, which supports general government operations such as police and fire protection, parks and the courts.

The total $1.18 billion budget would be about $100 million more than the current year's budget, with about half of the proposed increase coming in the general fund.

The proposed spending increases include about $23.4 million in new or additional personnel costs including $15.3 million in pay and benefit increases for union employees and $3.6 million to fund 58 new positions.

The proposed new jobs include nine in field operations, which takes care of maintenance of city buildings and parks; two new fire-code inspectors; two new city planners; a new criminal attorney position; and a third deputy city manager position.

The nine positions being eliminated, all of which are all not currently filled, include one council liaison position in City Councilman Steve Wolfson's office Wolfson chose to have a staff of two instead of the three he's allowed.

As in previous years, the largest chunk of the city's general fund budget, about 60 percent, would pay for public safety, including Metro Police, which would see an additional $10.1 million from the city in the coming year, the fire department, city marshals, the detention center, and code enforcement.