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Regular City Council Meeting Monday,July 22,2013 Page 26 At the request of Councilmember Willmus, Mr. Miller advised that the 2013 levy was approximately$18,269,000 and the 2012 levy approximately$15 million. In response, with reserves now at $13.5 million, Councilmember Willmus opined that to continue building those reserves at a rate of $1 million annually, while continually chasing targets and inflating those numbers with each budget cycle, at some point the reserve levels needed to be reconsidered as to what level was ap- propriate. Councilmember Willmus further opined that this was a part of the budget cycle from his perspective. Mayor Roe suggested that the question was what was the plan to make the Gen- eral Fund sustainable going forward; and if part of that plan was to reduce re- serves to 35-45% of the City's annual operating budget, when the bottom of the range was reached,how did the City account for spending based on annual operat- ing costs and not taking from reserves to accomplish that. Councilmember Willmus opined that, if the inflationary function was continued in annual budget projections, reserve funds would continue to exceed target percent- ages. Councilmember Willmus again expressed his preference for a more accu- rate picture of those inflationary pictures at this point, with Mayor Roe respond- ing that this was a preference shared by others as well. Councilmember Willmus opined that historical data provided an easier process, with decisions made in March, April or May versus making those decisions in November or December. Councilmember Laliberte stated that she agreed that LGA money not be used for operating costs; but would support its use for CIP so movement in that fund not be frozen for another year. However, Councilmember Laliberte recognized an impact of$245,000 or $430,000 beyond its control; and given that tough spot at this time, she expressed her interest in directing the City Manager and staff to prepare a flat budget and not take advantage of levy limits to the maximum, in an effort to see what Department Heads would come forward with in those pro- posals. Mayor Roe clarified that Councilmember Laliberte's request was for a zero levy increase for 2014,with the exception of bonded debt service. Councilmember Laliberte concurred, opining that it was a disservice to citizens to work in a bubble, with residents recently asked by the legislature to pay additional taxes, impacts of the recent bond issues, and implementation of additional utility fees. While understanding the rationale behind suggestions by other Coun- cilmembers, Councilmember Laliberte opined that it was time to give residents a break, which was the legislature's rational in proposing the LGA. Councilmem- ber Laliberte noted that the School District would also be going out for a referen- dum that would further impact residents; and her request was to see if a budget