2002-01-09 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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7. Resolution #01-27 Adopting: 2002 Tax Levv Mayor Swedberg thanked Council and Staff for all the time and efforts to prepare the budget. He then explained that the City has been scrambling to prepare numbers since there was a delay in receiving the changes from the state. Motion by Mayor Swedbel1l, seconded by Council Member Travis to keep the property taxes at the 2001 level oUl,210,OOO. Mayor Swedberg commented that the state took away $126,000 from the City in homestead credit and local government aid that amounts to approximately 11% of the City's budget. He indicated that he is proposing no tax increase because taxes have increased for the last three years. He further indicated that property taxes are rising three times faster than population growth and taxes compared to valuation is increasing by 29%. Vote: Ayes - 2, Nays - 3 (Broussard Vickers/CapralNelson). Motion failed. Motion by Couucil Member Broussard Vickers, seconded by Council Member Capra to approve Resolution #01-27, approvinl! the 2002 Tax Levv of$I,480,23. Mayor Swedberg made a point of order questioning if the dollar amount that Council is talking about is the exact same as the preliminary amount passed by Resolution whether this Resolution needed to be voted on. City Attorney Hoeft recommended voting on this Resolution because the first Resolution was a preliminary number and Council had indicated it would take final action. Council Member Travis indicated he agreed with Council Member Broussard Vickers' comments from the budget discussion. He also indicated that he agreed with Council Member Capra that the issues she had raised were valid. He then commented that he wished it were not so. Council Member Capra agreed that she wished it were not so as well and then explained that the City had learned that there are past deficit funds that, according to the recommendation of the auditor, need to be taken care of She then explained that if Council did not ask for the maximum levy the City would not be able to payoff old debts and would pass them on to the next Council. Council Member Nelson commented that she was sitting on the fence on this budget for weeks and had spent a Jot of time trying to stick with last year's levy amounts. She commented that she was concerned with the article a year ago in the Quad Community Press that had said that Centerville was a very highly taxed community. She then commented that the City needed to plan for street repair, to pay off the deficit funds, and for the deferred compensation liability and potential TIF liability. She further commented that she had read a recent article that compared levies in Centerville, Lino Lakes and Circle Pines and Centerville's increase was the lowest of the three cities based Page 11 ofl7