Work continues on city budget

Deadline nears to tally numbers

Lorain City Council continued its budget planning at a Finance Committee meeting Feb. 26 as the deadline nears for the city to submit the final draft to the Lorain County Auditor.

The general fund is estimating revenue for this year at $38,366,052, and the city’s expenses are forecast at $43,802,825, said city Auditor Karen Shawver.

One-time deposits to the general fund from worker’s compensation rebates, and federal funds totaling $13,882,217, have kept the city’s budget from dipping into a deficit, Shawver said.

Currently, the city has a surplus of $8,378 million, she said.

“The surplus is a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic grant funds awarded to the city,” Shawver said. “Had we not received those dollars, the city would be in an entirely different financial position right now.”

The federal funds were from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act and the Coronavirus Response and Consolidated Appropriations Act which “provided fast and direct economic assistance for American workers, families, small businesses and industries,” according to the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

The surplus also includes funds from the American Rescue Plan Act which the federal government handed out to municipalities to offset costs from the pandemic, Shawver said.

“We want to live within our means,” she told city officials.

City Treasurer Terri Soto also attended the Finance Committee meeting and explained her office’s efforts in an aggressive campaign to collect taxes that the city is owed from residents to help build the city’s coffers.

Soto and her staff picked up duties left behind when a field inspector’s job was eliminated from

Shawver’s office due to financial cutbacks.

The treasurer and her staff observe which contractors are working in the city, such as roofing, construction, landscaping and other companies, to ensure they’re also paying their fair share of taxes as well, Soto said.

She said she also receives many anonymous tips from people who help with the process.

Watching the Ohio Lottery list also is part of the process for ensuring the city is receiving the taxes from that venue, Soto said.

Soto publicly thanked Lorain Municipal Judge Mark Mihok, who was also in attendance at the Finance committee meeting, for his efforts in convicting those who attempt to evade paying taxes.

Soto said the Ohio Attorney General’s office also her in her efforts to convict those violating the taxation laws.

The budget is considered a “living, breathing document” that is ever-changing and can be amended at any time, City Council President Joel Arredondo said.

The city must have its budget in order by the end of March, otherwise, no funds can be spent, officials said.