2012 City Budget: What Should Be Cut? What Should Be Saved?

The city's budget for the 2012 fiscal year was recently released, and it seems that there will be no big surprises.

However, a number of changes will take place—many of them foreseen by developments this year, especially with the elimination of redevelopment agencies throughout the state.

Here's a look at where the city will be spending its money, what got cut and what got saved in the budget: 

The city is expecting revenues to be $32.6 million and expenditures to be $32.5 million, which means the city will be operating with a surplus. 

The most significant cut to the city's revenues will be $457,000 that would have been used to pay for the administrative support needed to run the city's redevelopment agency. The city will be eliminating a part-time senior planner position, which was previously paid for with redevelopment funds and will reduce expenses by $65,000. The $40,000 in funding for over-the-counter plan check services will be cut.  

On the other hand, the city has made some significant changes to either add or save certain services. With COPS funding restored, the city was able to hire an additional traffic safety police officer. The city was able to save $80,000 by not holding an election last November. All of the council members who were up for re-election ran unopposed. The city attorney's office saved the city $30,000 by agreeing not to outsource certain legal expenses. The city was able to knock off $378,000 by paying off debt for remodeling City Hall. 

The city will also be purchasing three new marked police cars for the Police Department.

Also, the city has reorganized its personnel with the following changes:

• added an assistant city manager position
• eliminated the circulation services manager position
• added 2,400 part-time hours to the library budget
• added a part-time site manager for the homework center
• eliminated the senior services manager position
• eliminated two part-time clerical positions
• added an accounting, customer service representative position

Like most cities, San Bruno has a number of reserve and special funds set up outside of the general fund so that certain ongoing projects get dedicated money allocated to them each year. Here, those special funds include the water enterprise fund, wastewater enterprise fund, stormwater fund and San Bruno Cable TV fund, as well as others. 

For the water enterprise fund, revenues are expected to be $11.2 million, a $370,900 increase from the 2011 fiscal year because of the by the City Council. 

For the same reasons, revenues for the wastewater enterprise fund will increase to $12 million—a $806,354 increase from the 2011 fiscal year. 

The city plans to spend $531,238 to maintain storm drains and for street sweeping. 

Revenues for San Bruno Cable TV are expected to decrease by 10 percent to $10 million, which is one of the reasons why a rate increase is going to be considered in the fall. The cable fund will see a $70,000 savings for not filling the cable director position, which .

According to the city budget report, cable TV customers continue to decline while San Bruno Cable has seen a slight increase in Internet, phone and business customers.

Also, while many people have the anticipation that the city will be distributing the $70 million from the PG&E settlement soon, the budget doesn't include that money. It will take nine months to a year to set up a nonprofit organization that will handle those funds, and until then the money has been invested in U.S. Treasury bonds that are generating a small amount of interest.

The city has instead budgeted for $5,368,159 in expenses related to the recovery of the Crestmoor neighborhood, all of which will be reimbursed through the $50 milllion trust fund PG&E set up with the city.

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