Cuts proposed in the City of Malibu’s Fiscal Year 2012-13 budget, although funding for street paving would triple.
By Jimy Tallal / Special to The Malibu Times
Assistant City Manager Reva Feldman said the city “had to tighten our belts” last week as she presented the City of Malibu’s proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2012-13.
The city’s general fund, or main operating budget, is projected to bring in $20.6 million in revenues and $20.5 million in expenses.
Feldman cited declining tax revenue in licenses and permits, as well as service charges, for a decrease in the general fund from the previous fiscal year of about $140,000. In response, Feldman said every city department cut back in order to wipe $2.2 million off the general fund budget.
“As a result of the projected decrease in General Fund revenue, the proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2012-13 has been developed extremely conservatively with an emphasis on streamlining services in order to reduce costs,” Feldman said as she read from her staff report Wednesday last week at a special budget meeting at City Hall.
Mayor Pro Tem Lou La Monte said one of the reasons the revenue from permits and fees was down was “because we’re not building things. We’ve got a lot of houses in the pipeline right now that can’t be built because of fire department regulations [concerning water availability].”
The biggest chunk of the city’s income, $8.6 million, comes from property taxes. However, it also derives income from fees, services, permits, licenses, sales taxes, other taxes and grants. In addition, special revenue funds contribute $5.3 million (minus $2.2 million in expenses). Special funds are usually limited in what they can be used for, and come from Legacy Park commercial property rents, developers, recycling, fines, gas taxes and the county. Feldman said special revenue funds were used in lieu of general funds where possible to reduce costs.
Mayor Laura Rosenthal promised a major increase in the city’s street paving program in her State of the City address, and it is reflected in the new proposed budget. Funding for annual street overlay is a proposed $975,000, more than triple the $300,000 budgeted for street paving in the previous fiscal year.
There are $6.85 million in “unfunded expenditures” – items to be paid for that aren’t included in the budget. Feldman said the entire amount would not have to be spent this year, but that the City Council will have to make decisions and plans about how to fund these items and whether the money should come from reserve funds or other sources. These items include $500,000 for an arrestor bed at Kanan-Dume Road and Pacific Coast Highway; $1 million for skate park construction; $2 million for storm water projects required by the city’s recent lawsuit settlement with the National Resources Defense Council and Santa Monica Baykeeper; and $1.45 million for a wastewater treatment facility study and $1.9 million for the environmental impact report and design of the wastewater treatment facility.
Planning Commissioner John Mazza, speaking as a private citizen, said during public comment that the $482,000 the city budgeted for beach patrols on county beaches should be paid by the county. All five councilmembers agreed with him, but said the county was unwilling and unable to pay, and that it would be a mistake to eliminate the beach patrol program. The county gives Malibu $150,000 to $200,000 per year in parking fees from Zuma Beach, which helps offset the cost.
“Over the past two years, the beach patrol has been very aggressive on fines, parking violations, parking citations and drinking on the beach, and the fines also help offset the cost,” City Manager Jim Thorsen said. “We’re getting closer to breaking even.”
Mazza also brought up questions concerning expenses associated with city employee retirement benefits. Feldman said that she conducts “frequent classification and compensation studies” on what other cities offer in terms of pay and benefits. Councilmember John Sibert told Mazza that the Administration and Finance Subcommittee (AFS) has several proposals “in the works” regarding the city’s employee retirement plan.
The AFS will also consider three other proposals for next fiscal year, including: hiring a parking enforcement company for 6-12 months a year so the Sheriff’s Department can stick to traffic and crime control; increase the street cleaning schedule to two Fridays a month during the summer in order to keep debris off the road for cyclists and pedestrians over the weekend, and decrease swimming pool fees for Seniors over the summer to increase their participation.
The proposed budget includes the City of Malibu’s 60 full-time employees, 12 “full-time equivalent” positions and three student interns, for a total of 75 full-time equivalent employees. Most of the “full-time equivalent” positions are made up of 40 part-time summer jobs in the Parks and Recreation Department.
Although an increase of $500,000 in this budget was requested in order to add two additional deputies to Malibu from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, that request had not been approved. Every department is tentatively scheduled for cuts, except the Public Works Department. Its budget is $70,000 more than last year, which includes transfers into the department, the need to purchase three new vehicles and fuel-related expenses and “Dial-a-Ride.”
In addition, the city budget includes $6 million in capital projects, with $975,000 for street overlays, $1.3 million for the Las Flores Creek restoration, $2.1 million for the Broad Beach infiltration project, $532,000 for the Wildlife Road treatment project and $1.1 million for the PCH Bike Routes Improvement project.