Council makes quick work of budget matters

The Texarkana, Texas, City Council made quick work of its meeting Monday, approving two budget-related items and moving through the rest of the light agenda in less than an hour.

The council voted to reauthorize a recently formed budget advisory committee and to change the amount of money the city must hold in reserve, known as the general fund balance.

The seven-member committee will stand until the council approves the Fiscal Year 2019 budget next year.

This year, the council took the committee’s recommendation to transfer $6 million from the city’s water fund to the general fund. The move compensated for a revenue shortfall while avoiding a proposed 4-cent property tax increase.

The committee also recommended the change in general fund balance policy the council approved Monday.

City policy had been to set aside 25 to 35 percent of the total budget for use in an emergency situation. The new policy changes that to 60 days’ worth of expenditures: $5.76 million, or about 16.45 percent of the total budget.

The shift will result in millions of dollars freed for use as the council sees fit. The lower fund balance still meets the standard recommended by experts for cities such as Texarkana with low to moderate risk, city Chief Financial Officer Kristin Peeples said.

The council also renominated Ward 6 Council Member Josh Davis to be the city’s representative on the Bowie Central Appraisal District’s Board of Directors.

The council’s next meeting is scheduled for Oct. 9.

On Twitter: @RealKarlRichter