By Joe Ragusa
BLOOMINGTON – The Bloomington City Council will formally begin budget discussions Monday night after months of debating how to erase a $7.5 million deficit.
Nearly two-thirds of that deficit was erased by revenue from the one-cent sales tax increase that was passed last year. City Manager David Hales said another $1.5 million was knocked off that deficit after some pension costs were re-analyzed and the rest was covered by either increased tax revenue or scaled back expenses.
“It’s in part because of the elimination of a crew through our solid waste fund and some operational efficiencies,” Hales said.
But there is some new spending. Hales says he will propose an additional $1 million for Connect Transit and BN Advantage.
He said the money will help Connect Transit expand service on Sundays and in the evenings and will supplement the investment Normal is already planning to make with its revenue from the increased sales tax.
Hales said it will ultimately be up to the city council to approve his proposed budget or make any changes.
“But in all my discussions with individual council members, I think there’s strong support for the supplemental or increased contribution to Connect Transit and also being a strong partner for the BN Advantage initiative,” Hales said.
BN Advantage is an economic development initiative led by the Bloomington-Normal Economic Development Council.
The overall budget is $207 million while the general fund alone is $105 million.
A city council work session will be held March 12 and a public hearing will be held March 28. Final adoption is expected to take place April 11. Bloomington’s fiscal year begins May 1.
Joe Ragusa can be reached at joe.ragusa@cumulus.com.
