There were no speakers Tuesday night on the city’s proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year.
The next step in the budget process is the expected adoption of the $15,850,253 financial plan which is scheduled for June 1 at 5:30 p.m. before city council convenes for its work session in the Lloyd Andrews City Meeting Hall on Jackson Street.
While no one spoke at the public hearing held during council’s regular meeting, Mayor Emery Doughtie said he would like to see some consideration to increasing police officer pay. “I feel like we need to make the community safer,” he said. “I think with the job they do they don't get adequate compensation.”
Doughtie said the city is fortunate to “have the police force we do” and to “have a diverse group of officers.”
He said, however, other communities offer more money and the city often loses officers to those jurisdictions.
While there was no further discussion on the matter, Doughtie said afterward, “We’re losing people. I would like to see a meaningful increase since it will help retain these individuals.”
He said he would like to see it initiated during the current budget discussions. “I don’t know we can afford to wait another year.”
The proposed budget was presented earlier this month to city council and allows city departments to maintain a minimal level of services without using fund balance or enacting a tax increase.
In other matters Tuesday City Manager Joseph Scherer highlighted the following in his report:
The gasoline supply situation in the city is stable but not back to normal. “Local suppliers are still on about 50 percent allocation (which varies by supplier and terminal) on branded fuel and gas.”
He said supply will continue to be tight. “I ask our citizens to please continue to be patient and be conservative.”
The shortages and outages at retail stations will probably continue for another week, he said. “The police department reports no incidents so far of violence or customer incidents at any stations.”
The police department recently conducted a focused effort on traffic safety and enforcement called Operation Slow Your Roll.
The campaign resulted in a total of 249 citations being issued.
