BUDGET UPDATE
The City Council will hold a public hearing on the proposed 2008 budget on the evening of November 26th. As we get closer to the hearing, I am going to try and disect some of the numbers, so it may be a bit easier to understand. This will be the fifth budget I have overseen as Mayor, and each one presents its own challenges. First, let's start with some important numbers:

TOTAL LEVY FOR CITY PURPOSES ONLY

YEAR TOTAL LEVY CHANGES

2003 $2,670,997 NA

2004 $2,668,562 - 0.02%

2005 $2,678,269 + 0.04%

2006 $2,698,654 + 0.76%

2007 $2,804,164 + 3.91%

2008 $2,814,987 + 0.39%

CITY MILL RATE

YEAR MILL CHANGE

2003 $8.02 NA

2004 $7.77 -3.12%

2005 $7.69 -1.03%

2006 $7.22 -6.11%

2007 $7.10 -1.66%

2008 $6.92 -2.54%

TOTAL MILL RATE

YEAR TOTAL CHANGE

2003 $24.29 NA

2004 $23.86 -1.18%

2005 $24.05 +0.80%

2006 $22.15 -7.90%

2007 $21.76 -1.76%

2008 Not determined yet

NA = Not applicable
* Including Tax Increment Finance District Levies
* The mill rate is the amount of taxes collected per $1,000 of equalized valuation. For example, a $8.02 mill rate would mean $802 in city taxes on a $100,000 home.
* The total mill rate is made up of the school district (51.4% of the 2007 levy), the city (32.6%), the county (22.2%), and miscellaneous (state, Moraine Park) minus the state lottery credit
* In 2005, the lottery credit was lower than average years, resulting in the increase.

EQUALIZED VALUATION

One of the reasons the city has been able to hold the line on taxes has been our growth, which has increased, but remains steady. The city's equalized valuation is the base on which we determine the mill rate. Here is a look at the city's growth over the past five years:

YEAR EQUAL. VALUE CHANGE
2003 $332,927,800 +3.89%

2004 $343,517,800 +3.18%

2005 $348,078,100 +1.33%

2006 $374,021,800 +7.45%

2007 $395,100,300 +5.64%

2008 $410,946,300 +4.01%

When I have some time, I will dissect the city's total debt, so we can see what we owe as a city through bonds and borrowings, and what the money was borrowed for.

CITY WEBSITE UPDATE

* I have asked city staff to make a more concerted effort to get city agendas and minutes up on the city website at a faster pace. The minutes that are on the web can be found here

* I have also requested that the proposed 2008 city budget be placed on the web as soon as the final draft is completed, along with a map of the city's aldermanic districts, so residents know who represents them on the Council

Any question - Email me