Aragon's public hearing for budget coming up Thursday

The first step in finalizing Aragon's budget for the 2018 fiscal year starts on Thursday night and the public is invited to come out and comment on the proposed revenue and spending for the city in the months ahead.

Aragon residents are asked to come to City Hall before the start of the 7 p.m. budget to sign in and take part in the meeting, where they can voice their opinion on proposed spending.

This year's budget calls for $ 863,270 in projected revenue and balances out with the same in expenditures for the FY 2018 budget, with $213,500 of that expected in real property taxes. It’s the first budget in several years where property taxes have outweighed municipal court fines for Aragon’s budget in several years. Expected municipal court fines were set at $205,000 for the year.

The rest of the revenue sources broke down to $125,000 in funds from Local Option Sales Tax, $ 76,900 in insurance premium taxes , $25,000 in alcoholic beverage excise taxes and $63,000 in garbage collection charges. Another $ 20,020 will be taken in from general government costs.

$15,000 is also expected to be generated in revenue from recreation fees, and $54,800 in franchise taxes as well. One area that continues to decrease following the change in how car tags are charged annually is motor vehicle and ad valorem taxes, which together total up to $25,000. The

city also brings in a total of $22,050 from a variety of sources including licensing and permit fees, from public safety and public works departments, interest revenue, sale of capital assets that have been put into surplus, and the receipts from the annual Aragon Barbecue to be held in June 2018.

Arago n’ s largest amount of spending for the coming year is projected to be in the Aragon Police Department, which has requested $231,130 for the year. The Public Works department also requested more than $ 145,000, and the City Clerk’s office more than $ 149,000. Council and mayor's salaries and expenses were totaled up at a combined $ 100,077. Elections are expected to cost $1,250, financial administration set aside at $21,000, and a combined $16,120 in costs for sanitation, code enforcement, and safety risk management has also been set aside.

This year's annual collections and costs are increased over what was called for in the FY 2017 budget approved in June 2016.

Those figures last year included $756,775 in revenue, based off of $190,000 municipal court fines, $155,000 in property tax revenue and other sources before the end of this year. After adjustments made midyear to the budget to increase revenue and expenditures, those figures tallied up to $771,775 after the council approved the revisions previously.

As of the June financial report from new financial consultant Rick Hartley, the city had thus far brought in 87 percent of the annual budget at $677,165 as of May 31.

That included $379,852 in taxes out of $485,000 that had been expected in the revised budget figures, $ 12,399 - or 18 percent over the budgeted figure of $10,500 in income on licenses and permits, and also more money for what the city has dubbed "other services" that has brought in more revenue than anticipated, at $102,535 compared to the $86,025 for approved numbers, or a 19 percent increase over what the city had expected.

By the end of May, the city had spent 98 percent of what it had expected for the year, with $732,456 in bills paid compared to the $745,691 that was budgeted for the year.

That will cut into the fund balance, which was budgeted for a final $421,571 for the year and increase slightly over the $396,571 the city started the fiscal year with in 2017. It'll look to end instead $ 55,291 short according to the latest figures presented by Hart- ley.

Three areas of spending have the city over budget for the year on expenditures. First, the city's elections cost more than was budgeted with a total spent of $3,750 for the year compared to the $1,250 set aside for council and mayor's elections.

Costs were 44 percent over the budgeted amount for the year for spending on t he city hall's buildings, with $76,104 spent on maintenance-related issues and bills compared to $52,670 budgeted.

The Public Works department and sanitation were also over their annual budgeted amounts before the end of May, but only slightly. there was a 2 percent variance in sanitation costs that added up to $119 difference between the $5,250 budgeted and $ 5,369 spent. Those are tipping fees paid to Waste Industries for the city to dump garbage, which because of an increase in tonnage has gone up.

Public Works additionally spent 9 percent over their budget for the year, $142,304 versus $129,719 by the end of May. Repairs to equipment accounted for much of that, along with an increase in workers salaries and temporary help used.

Figures weren't available to vote on before the end of the year due to Hartley's hire back in March, according to Garry Baldwin.