FY 2023 budget will be released tonight
Photo by Jason Benavides
May 2. The 2023 Fiscal Year town budget is scheduled to be released at tonight’s Town Board Meeting. Town Manager Andrew Grant will provide the details for the commissioners; highlights of the $28 million spending plan will be available for residents online beginning Tuesday May 3.
The current 2022 fiscal year budget is $26.1 million, an increase of some $3 million over the prior year’s budget. The proposed increase for next year’s budget is 7.28 percent.
The budget reflects a 22 percent increase in personnel expenses, three-quarters of which is related to public safety.
A public hearing will be held Monday May 16 at Town Hall.
The current town tax rate is 0.2220 per $100 assessed value, among the lowest in the region.
Pursuant to state law, the town must adopt a budget by July 1.
—Also at Monday’s meeting, the Town Board is expected to approve an agreement between Charlotte and Cornelius which will permit the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Dept. to provide animal control services on an as needed basis to the Town, at a rate of $240 per call for service. This will supplement the town’s police animal control operation.
The May 2 meeting will take place in Town Hall on Catawba Avenue, and can also be viewed online at www.cornelius.org; look for watch meetings online.
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This is utterly false information and irresponsible journalism. It’s not $28M in spending, it’s $33M proposed for next year. Government accounting may call 1-time ARPA funding from Washington “supplanted” spending (as if it doesn’t count somehow), but it’s still CASH GOING OUT THE DOOR next year! Just look at the facts – the only way you get to $28.3M spending is if you believe our spending on Police is DROPPING from $7.5M to $4.3M next year. Of course, its not, it’s going up, as it must.
Astute observation! You really have to study the Town funding line items (operating, capital improvement (long-range and pending) to understand the dire need to prioritize all funding choices planned and projected though 2027.
Higgins, who served as chair of Parks and Rec, is expected to run for mayor in 2023
Mayor Woody Washam responded by saying “$28 million is correct, however, what Mr. Gilroy is counting is the ARPA money. The actual budget is not $33 million it is $28 million.” The mayor went on to say your comments are misleading “and blowing up the budget by whatever means…that’s not what’s going on here.” The American Rescue Plan Act funds are a one-time “golden egg” from the federal government. The Smithville Community Coalition has asked for a one-time allotment of $6.8 million in ARPA funds for redevelopment, out of $9.6 million that the town will receive from Uncle Sam.
From Town Manager Grant: The draft FY23 budget is accurate in showing expenditures of $28M. An additional $4.8M of ARP funds is being utilized for Public Safety salaries supplanting in order to free up the Town’s funds to utilize on various projects, so the combination of budget and ARP funds is $33M. Approximately $4M of the ARP-supplanted funds have been earmarked for projects in the draft FY23 budget.
False, False, False! Our Mayor doesn’t understand it either! $33M spending going out the door next year. ARPA money is ours and it’s real money! It counts too!
Next year looks to be a blowout spending year in Cornelius, supported by yet another tax increase unfortunately.
You don’t serve our community well by this rhetoric. There are two separate funding sources. The Town Budget which carries over each year and the pot of money from Federal largesse. It is appropriate to keep them separate and manage the separately. The mayor does understand and so do the fiscal professionals husbanding our resources. Look to the line items you have issues with and lay off the rhetoric