COLUMBUS, Ohio – The 2015 operating budget unveiled by Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman Friday reflects the need to tighten belts in the face of dwindling resourced coming to cities from the state government.
The $813 million 2015 General Operating Fund budget includes an increase of only 0.7 percent over the 2014 budget approved by City Council.
“As we experience the full effects of reduction in state assistance, it is essential for us to continue our strong neighborhood services without increasing expenses,” Coleman said.
He said the spending blueprint maintains basic services with an eye toward tight budgets in future years.
Coleman’s administration is trying to save nearly $260 million through 2019 by curbing benefits, eliminating unnecessary overtime and more efficient policies of performance management, technology, and green initiatives.
Since 2001, Coleman says city spending has come in $169 million under budget and was more than $25 million below projected levels this year.
The Department of Public Safety receives the lion’s share – 67 percent — of the budget’s planned expenditures: $546 million to maintain police and fire personnel at their current levels of 1,899 police officers and 1,538 firefighters through the end of 2015.
The Development Department would be funded at $24.2 million with plans to continue the aggressive program of code enforcement.
Services like trash, curbside recycling and yard waste collection, snow plowing and pothole repair will be funded with $38.8 million of the budget. Coleman says snow removal operations will be improved wither hiring new full-time staff.
The budget would provide $36.4 million of the Department of Recreation and Parks’ overall $46.5 million budget.
The $22.1 million set aside as the city’s contribution to Columbus Public Health’s overall $28.9 million budget $4.8 million for five neighborhood health centers and $475,000 for prenatal care, infant safe sleep education and neighborhood support, as recommended by the Infant Mortality Task Force.
The city will deposit $2.2 million to the Rainy Day Fund, bringing the total to $67 million. The spending plan also calls for $5.1 million to be set aside into the 2016 Basic Neighborhood Services Fund to prepare for the next budget.