Sanibel City Council OKs tentative budget, mills
The Sanibel City Council adopted the tentative millage rate and budget for the island for fiscal year 2023-24 during its first budget hearing last week.
On Sept. 11, it voted unanimously 5-0 to approve an operating rate of 2.500 mills — which is lower than the not-to-exceed rate of 2.9598 that it had approved in July and lower than the 2.5064 that it had directed staff at an August workshop to use when preparing the proposed budget for the first hearing.
Included in the millage rate resolution, the council also approved the voted debt service millage rates, including 0.0624 mills for the tentative sewer and 0.1305 mills for the tentative recreation center.
The operating millage rate can be lowered during the budget process but not raised.
The council also voted 5-0 to approve a tentative budget of $182,278,937 for the upcoming year.
The Lee County Property Appraiser’s Office certified that the gross taxable value for operating and budgeting purposes not exempt from taxation within the city of Sanibel as $4,217,281,792.
Prior to the votes, Deputy City Manager and Finance Director Steve Chaipel provided an updated presentation on the proposed budget based on the millage rate of 2.5064, as directed last month. Along with the reduced rate, it included the following additional changes that came out of the workshop:
– Updated the General Fund budget to include a $2.6 million transfer from the Hurricane Ian Fund related to the state Emergency Bridge Loan proceeds to support operating wages in the fund.
– Updated the Capital Planning and Acquisition Fund budget to eliminate a $1 million transfer out to the General Fund.
– Increased the Sewer Fund transfer in from the Hurricane Ian Bridge Loan fund from $1 million to $2 million to support operating wages in the fund.
– Restored the Sewer Fund Disaster Reserve to $1 million (available from revenues in the system).
– Updated that Transportation Fund budget to include a $100,000 transfer to the Transportation Capital Project Fund to correct a deficit fund balance in the previous draft budget.
Negating storm-related expenses, he noted that the tentative budget is down year-over-year.
“The operating budget is actually down about 2.3% from last year,” Chaipel said.
At the request of the council, he outlined some of the cost-cutting steps that staff took to tighten the proposed budget as much as possible, including re-prioritizing unnecessary capital projects or those no longer feasible as a result of the hurricane and not funding certain staff positions in the coming year.
Chaipel noted that the budget does include inflationary increases and staff wage increases.
During the following discussion among the dais, several council members indicated that they were leaning toward the 2.500 mills — rather than the 2.5064 as presented — for a variety of reasons.
Asked if there would be complications using the 2.500, staff reported that there would not.
The second and final budget hearing is set for Sept. 27 at 5:30 p.m.
To reach TIFFANY REPECKI / trepecki@breezenewspapers.com, please email