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By Dave Toplikar (contact) 
Wednesday, April 6, 2011 | 1:50 p.m.
Related Story
The cuts won't be as dramatic as they were last year, when Las Vegas city employees were asked to make major concessions in wages and benefits and many began working four days a week.
But next year's budget for the city of Las Vegas does show a deficit of $7.9 million, according to Candace Falder, the city's chief financial officer.
Falder, director of the Department of Finance, presented an overview of the city's tentative fiscal year 2012 budget Wednesday to the city council.
She said next year's budget shows revenue of about $447 million and expenses at $455 million, creating the $8 million gap.
"We have not built a tax increase into this budget," Falder said.
She said her office is working with the city's department heads to see where non-labor cuts can be made or where cost-cutting efficiencies can be made.
The city will file its tentative budget with the state on April 15. Then the city council will have a formal budget hearing on May 17 and will need to file its final budget with the state on June 1.
Falder told the council that during the last three years, the city has trimmed its budget by 20 percent, or by more than $115 million.
For the current fiscal year, which ends June 30, the city is estimating a budget of $461 million in its general fund, she said.
The biggest hit over the last year came to the public works department, which was reduced by 49.2 percent, or $15.8 million, with a budget of $16.3 million for this fiscal year.
"In general government, we reduced our budget from 2008 by 43.6 percent," Falder said. That was a cut of $37.1 million, leaving a budget of $48 million for the current fiscal year, she said.
In planning out next year's general fund budget in terms of personnel costs, she said there would be no cost of living adjustments for city employees, no "resets" of concessions made by city unions last year, a base adjustment for the employees' share in the state's Public Employees Retirement System, a $3 million cut in executive/appointive positions and additional rollbacks in employment costs.
For non-labor costs, she said they are starting with the assumption that all expenditures will remain the same as they were in 2011.
Falder said revenue for next year will drop from $461.6 million to $447.1 million.
"For consolidated tax, all we're anticipating is a modest CPI (Consumer Price Index) increase," she said. The C-tax is expected to increase from $206.5 million to $211.7 million, she said.
Property tax revenue is expected to drop from $102.8 million this year to $91.5 million in FY12, or an 11 percent reduction, she said.
Revenue from licensing and franchise fees are expected to stay the same, at $82.1 million, she said.
Transfers from non-general fund areas of the budget will decline from $14.6 million to $6.1 million, she said.
"We do not have any other other overages in the internal services funds, but we do have some interest that's been accrued in an enterprise fund and in one special revenue fund that we're transferring in for $6.1 million in one-time monies," she said.
"We see a shortfall of $7.9 million" for fiscal year 2012," she said. "The structural deficit would have been $14 million if we didn't have that interest to transfer in the $6.1 million."
Wages and benefits are $241 million this year and are expected to be $240.9 million next year, she said.
Metro Police, which provide law enforcement throughout Clark County, has been able to reduce its budget so that the city of Las Vegas' portion of the cost will go from $130.3 million this year to $122.3 for the upcoming fiscal year, she said.
Councilman Steve Wolfson said the nearly 10 percent cut in public safety over the last three years was one of the largest categories of cuts, amounting to $311 million.
Wolfson said the city has also asked about going even lower in its contribution to Metro Police from the $122.3 million expected for next year, she said.
"They are going back into their budget to see what they can do to lower the contribution by the city and the county," Falder said.
For FY 2012, the city's ending fund balance would be $67.3 million, which would be 15 percent, she said.
The council's policy had been to keep ending balances at 12 percent, but last year the council suspended that to 10 percent, she said. She said the 15 percent projected ending fund balance appeared to be "very good."
However, the trends they see in revenues over the next five years that are affected by sales taxes and a reduction in property tax revenue, "that 15 percent will be eaten into drastically over the next three to four years and will not come close to even being double-digit fund balance," she said.
"That's why we have to keep looking for ways to reduce our costs," Wolfson said.
The 8 mil deficit they are projecting now will be closer to 10 mil by the time 2012 rolls into view.
Chunky says:
The evidence of thought and effort going into this new budget is great to see.
Surely they can find a few million to close the gap completely to get a balanced budget without burdening taxpayers any more than they are already.
Thanks for a well written story!
That's what Chunky thinks!
Hey at least we have that that cool mob museum.
It's about two percent. Just balance the budget.
The city has done a great job keeping the money in check, and saving needed city services. Since all their public unions have agreed to much needed concessions willingly, they deserve some praise too. Hopefully they can bring some of the services back that were cut soon. $8 million is a lot of money, but not when you consider they will really have a surplus of over $50 million. They also are ending this year with $60 million extra (reserve), and they still have the $50 million "disaster fund" that has been in the bank collecting interest (estimated at near $55 million now). If only the county could figure it out.
Cops are way overpaid.
Whack that budget, reduce hours, hire professionals, retrain or fire the bozos. Are they above the law??
Firefighters have a clear history of gouging the system for benefits, wages, abuse. Not cleaning house house is proof positive of political connections a bit too close. Why are they still pumping us dry? If there's still smoke, there's still...???
Until there's oversight of contracts and some semblance of fairness, nothing else makes much sense in budgetary issues.
City employees are OVER COMPENSATED. Significant cuts to salaries are due. We still overpay local employees more than 30% above other localities and 200% over local private industry.
Hotel staff are overpaid. Anyone can park cars, open doors, serve drinks, clean rooms, restock buffet lines.
They should get minimum wages and the casions should keep their tips. Their jobs are not worth what they are paid.
I trust the casions will take that money and reinvest it back into the community.
Greedy overpaid casino workers.
Hey, ronster, are you out of your mind and completely nuts? There are doctors for that kind of stuff.
Who else would make the casino business work, if these weren't the casino owners, the casino management and the casino workers to serve their guests?
These folks are doing business in Vegas to clear these budget deficits and most of them are really working their a%% off. Believe it, because I saw it i.r.l., not only on tv.
Regards
Chuck
As roseanrose is regularly saying that Education cuts are needed because the kids just do NOT LEARN much, so also cops and firefighters are also overpaid because - look at all the crime that still occurs, all the arson and all the huge expenses we incur.
And for what?? They should be paid like babysitters - minimum wage.
Why doesn't Las vegas get hip??
According to the DEA, several hundred US border guards are comlicit in deals with Mexican Drug Lords to look the other way and allow gobs and goolobs of drugs to enter our little country.
Hundreds. One lady got 5 million cash, then a jail cell, but she's the exception.
Why, with our super location and folks from around the world showing up here looking to have a good time, can you imagine what Poncho and Pablo and Maria and Juan would GIVE just for a corner on our market??
Then there's all the profit for the space cake bakers, restaurants, the bong blowers, the shops, dancers, waiters etc.. We'd smoke ourselves right into the black in no time.
Screw cuts, just hook up like the cops have been doin.