The 2010-11 budget process for the City of Naples is underway.  The fiscal year begins October 1. 

In December 2009, the City Council reviewed a five-year General Fund Sustainability report to provide the likely outcome of the City’s budget if everything continued heading in the current direction.  The report took into consideration any known information at that time such as contractual raises, trends in insurance, or trends in property tax values, to predict a positive or negative cash flow for the next five years. 

Sustainability reports provide council and staff an indication as to the direction the future budgets will take. 

The General fund is the primary operating fund of the city, representing primarily revenues and expenditures related to property taxes and other taxes.  The General fund pays for most of the common governmental services, including police and fire departments, recreation, mayor, council, parks, accounting and planning. 

The General Fund Sustainability report showed that it is likely that the city’s General fund may need to add revenues or cut costs to keep a balanced budget over the next five years, and city staff is working diligently to develop the required balanced budget. 

Residents may participate in the budget development in many ways.  According to the budget calendar, there is a public workshop on August 16, and two public hearings on September 1 and 15.  However, before then, interested people can participate by visiting this link to make recommendations or suggestions.  http://rpgwebapps.naplesgov.com:450/rpgsp/NPBDGR0A.pgm 
This form is transmitted to the Finance Department and the information will be compiled in a data base.  For additional budget information or for an opportunity to make other suggestions, email finance@naplesgov.com, or contact any department director. 

The City’s Fiscal Year begins October 1.  Inputs for budgets are gathered from neighborhood associations, employees, city council appointed committees, city residents and business people.  All departments that had Capital Projects (a cost greater than $10,000, a useful life of more than two years) in the next five years presented those to City Council in June.

Staff assessed available and potential revenue sources.  Departments prepared the budgets for operations including personnel costs, operating expenses and capital.  The 2009-2010 adopted budget, a balanced and complete document, will be presented to City Council for their review and discussion at August workshops beginning August 17th.  After final consensus, the budget and tax rate will be presented in the first public hearing and reading of the ordinance on September 2nd at 5:05 P.M.  The second public hearing and final reading of the ordinance is scheduled for September 16th.  This adopted budget will begin October 1, 2009.

Budget Highlights

• Proposed millage rate is 1.1800, which is less than the rollback rate of 1.2112, and represents the same millage the City applied in the years 1995-2000,
• Budget has 451.5 positions compared to 481.3 in 2008-09, and approximately the same number of budgeted employees as the city had in 1988
• Total General Fund budgeted expenditures are $35,385,423
• All funds budgeted expenditures (excluding the Internal Service Funds) are $95.1 million
• Capital expenditures are $14,991,467 (in all funds)
• Total Personal Services Expenditures city-wide have decreased 5%
• General Fund total Salaries and Wages decreased 7%