City of Gainesville warns about service cuts if GRU Authority cuts transfer

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – At the May 7 Gainesville City Commission Budget Workshop, the Commission considered potential cuts to the FY25 budget that would be required if the GRU Authority decides to cut the Government Services Contribution (GSC).

Executive Chief of Staff Cintya Ramos said the City Manager’s office is working from the assumption that there will be no GSC transferred from GRU to the General Fund in the next budget year. She said, “We thought this would be the best approach because it’s always easier to put things back into the budget than take away.” She said every department went through the exercise of meeting a target budget that assumes no GSC; each department also submitted a budget that would include the full GSC for next year. The FY24 GSC was $15.3 million, and the City’s formula (which GRU is not required to follow) calls for a $16.2 million transfer in FY25; however, the target budget numbers assume a $15.3 million cut from last year’s transfer.

One of the assumptions for the budget estimates is that the overall number of positions (FTEs) will be held the same in FY25 (1497.75 FTEs), and salary increases will be 2.5% (for comparison, the County hopes to increase salaries by 6% in the next budget year) or as detailed in bargaining agreements for union members.

On the revenue side, property values won’t be finalized until June 1, but property taxes, based on property value increases alone, are expected to increase from $62.9 million to $67.9 million, an 8% increase. The target budget with a full GSC reduction would come in at about $11 million less than the adopted FY24 budget. At this time last year, the City was discussing about $19 million in budget cuts, but after a 29% property tax increase, the General Fund budget increased by a little over $2 million.

All of the summaries below are for General Fund expenses; every department also has a budget that incorporates funds from other sources. The full budget presentation is available here.

City Attorney

The City Attorney’s office proposed $44k in salary increases and a small decrease in benefits for an overall increase of $43k, or 2.6% more than the FY24 budget. To meet the target budget, the office eliminated funds that were set aside as a contingency for complex litigation.

City Attorney Daniel Nee said his department is different from many of the others because about 94% of its General Fund budget is in salaries and benefits: “We don’t have programs to give; we have people, and we have people that have salaries, wages, and fringe benefits that are arguably not even up-to-date.” He said his department had absorbed increases in contracts for its document management system and other systems that are necessary for a legal office.

City Auditor

The City Auditor’s office proposed a $25k decrease in salaries and benefits (including a reduction of 0.2 FTE for an Assistant City Auditor) and a $39k decrease in operating expenses, for an overall decrease of about $64k, or 6% less than the FY24 budget.

Impacts include a reduction in funds for consultant support and changes to software used by the department.

City Auditor Stephen Mhere said the cuts would have a “negative impact on the productivity of the office. We will not be able to do as many audits as we could. There are audits that are going to be put on hold” because of the inability to hire consultants. Mhere said external audits can be helpful when the public may not perceive that his office is independent; for example, that might occur in an audit of the City Commission.

“The theme that we’re going to see consistently for the rest of the afternoon, I think, is that… if we cut dollars, we’re reducing services… That’s the reality.” – Mayor Harvey Ward

Mayor Harvey Ward said that the 0.2 reduction in the Assistant City Auditor (a voluntary reduction) reduces that job to four days a week, so “their productivity will be reduced by this. The theme that we’re going to see consistently for the rest of the afternoon, I think, is that… if we cut dollars, we’re reducing services… That’s the reality.”

City Clerk

The City Clerk’s Office proposed a $123k decrease in salaries and benefits and a $55k increase in operating expenses, for an overall reduction of $68k, or 5.2% less than the FY24 adopted budget.

The cuts include a reduction of one FTE, the vacant Policy Oversight Administrator position. That cut will also result in the elimination of the Policy Research Program that provided opportunities for interns to work on policy issues for City Commissioners.

Ward said an additional impact was that “there are several University of Florida students who will not get exposure to City Hall and be able to go tell the City of Gainesville story once they graduate.”

City Commissioner Cynthia Chestnut asked staff to investigate whether recent changes to the permitted uses for Commissioners’ travel funds would allow Commissioners to hire interns.

City Commission

The City Commission office proposed a $12k increase in salaries (mostly determined by the ordinance that calculates raises for Commissioners based on the Consumer Price Index), a $92k increase (72.5%) in fringe benefits, and no change in operating expenses, for an overall increase of $104k, or 21.8% more than the FY24 budget.

Last year, Steve Varvel, Office of Budget & Management Director, explained that some of the increase in benefits for FY24 came from the Florida Retirement System (FRS) contributions, which “skyrocketed… for the elected official class.” The City pays the contributions for the Mayor and all of the Commissioners except Ed Book because he participates as a Santa Fe College employee. The City even has to make contributions for Commissioner Cynthia Chestnut, who receives an FRS pension.

This year, Ramos explained that incorrect rates were used to calculate FRS payments for Commissioners for FY24, “so the FY24 budget is understated… And we also had some Commissioners that joined our health plan after the time that we developed the budget, so those costs are not reflected here, but those adjustments will be made.” She said the Commission will soon be asked to approve a budget amendment for FY24 that would include an increase of about $92k for the current budget year.

City Manager

The City Manager’s office proposed a $59k reduction in salaries and benefits, a $39k reduction in operating expenses, and no change in Aid to Private Organizations ($4k), for an overall decrease of $97.5k, or 5.9% less than the FY24 budget. No positions were eliminated.

The reductions in the Government Affairs and Community Relations division will impact community event programs such as marketing, promotions, and neighborhood events.

Chestnut said she was concerned about cutting back on “Neighborhood Services, marketing, and getting information out and engaging citizens.”

City Manager Cynthia Curry said she shared the concern, but “we’re hoping that the GRU money will come back.”

“It’s important for the community to understand that this is dependent on decisions made by folks who don’t sit at this dais.” – Mayor Harvey Ward

Ward pointed out that “very little changes” if the GSC is kept “stable.” He said the $15.3 million used in the proposed budgets is “dollar-for-dollar stable, it is not percentage-stable. It does not keep up with the resolution this Commission passed before there was such a thing as a GRU Authority… It’s important for the community to understand that this is dependent on decisions made by folks who don’t sit at this dais.”

Equity & Inclusion

The Office of Equity & Inclusion proposed an increase of $20k in salaries and benefits, a $118k reduction in operating expenses, and no change in Aid to Private Organizations ($4k), for an overall decrease of $98k, or 6.3% less than the FY24 budget.

Director of Equity and Inclusion Zeriah Folston said the department cut contractual services and temporary services, and one impact could be a reduction in Journey to Juneteenth programming in 2025 if he can’t find a way to replace the funds. He said the temporary services are used to provide small business services. 

Office of Communications and Marketing

The Office of Communications and Marketing proposed a $44k decrease in salaries and benefits, including cutting 1.5 positions, an Executive Assistant Senior and a half-time Event Coordinator; both positions are currently vacant. The office also proposed cutting operating expenses by almost $50k, for a total reduction of 4.9% from the FY 24 budget.

“These would be events that are far-reaching and attract a good interest in our community – things like State of the City, the swearing-in, the holiday parade, Journey to Juneteenth.” – Communications Director Jennifer Smart

Communications Director Jennifer Smart said both of the positions were vacated in the past eight months and the service impacts of the cuts would be “a large difference in the planning and execution of many of the events that the City presents. These would be events that are far-reaching and attract a good interest in our community – things like State of the City, the swearing-in, the holiday parade, Journey to Juneteenth. And then some of these other events would be more internal-facing, things like employee rallies or gatherings or events to honor and appreciate employees.”

Commissioner Casey Willits said he was concerned about the cuts because “this will affect how we sell the City… because some things don’t naturally sell themselves… This is one way where I really see that going to $15.3 million for GSC, or better, would be important to maintain some of our communication.”

Commissioner Ed Book agreed that it is “a big concern… This is the face of what we do.”

“This is the department that tells our story.” – Commissioner Cynthia Chestnut

Chestnut agreed, “This is the department that tells our story… So I think all of us will be trying to find a way for you to not have this happen in your area.”

Ward added, “Good work, unfortunately, does not tell its own story… And I’ll go back to what I said earlier: we are at a point where if we reduce the dollars in the budget, we will see that in a reduction of services that are palpable in our community.”

Department of Financial Services

The Department of Financial Services proposed cutting salaries and benefits by $210k and operating expenses by $18k. The personnel cuts include five vacant positions: one Account II, one Contract Coordinator, two Revenue and Receivables Specialist II positions, and one Revenue and Receivables Field Collector. The impact of the cuts will include a reduction in operating expenses for computer and office equipment, travel, training, dues and membership, and materials and supplies. 

“Any cuts to our workforce pose significant risks to the City. Financial Services already operates with great efficiency and fiscal responsibility, and investing in our department will safeguard the long-term success of our City.” – Director of Financial Services Dennis Nguyen

Director of Financial Services Dennis Nguyen said the department has “made significant strides [over the past year], and eliminating these essential positions… jeopardizes the progress we have achieved… Any cuts to our workforce pose significant risks to the City. Financial Services already operates with great efficiency and fiscal responsibility, and investing in our department will safeguard the long-term success of our City.”

Ward agreed, “The lesson that I’ve learned over the last few years is that we must fund Financial Services, and shedding positions at Financial Services is something that we will pay for and future Commissions will pay for.”

Curry said the positions “are vacant right now, but they are still critical to… getting fully staffed to be able to maintain what they’ve already put in place.”

Department of Human Resources

The Department of Human Resources proposed cutting $214.5k in salaries and benefits, including cutting three vacant positions: a Compensation Manager, an Employee and Labor Relations Manager, and a Learning and Organizational Development Specialist. The department also proposed an $88k increase in operations, a 39.4% increase, which includes $15k for PowerDMS, policy management software that is used by multiple departments. The net reduction is 5.4% from the FY24 budget. 

Human Resources Director Laura Graetz said the eliminated positions are vacant, but they “come at a cost of a lot of increased workload for myself, for our Assistant HR Director, and for our Talent Strategy Manager, as well.” She said this could result in “slower response times – it may take us longer to hire.”

Office of Management and Budget

The Office of Management and Budget proposed cutting $104k in salaries and benefits and $161k in operating expenses, for an overall reduction of 20.6% from the FY24 budget.

Impacts will include reclassifying the vacant Director of City Centered Design position to a Lead Budget Analyst at a lower salary, reducing special assignment funding in salaries and wages, reducing expenses for professional services, and realigning funding for some software packages.

Risk Management Department

The Risk Management Department proposed realigning Parking Garage Security funding to the Transportation Department and cutting operating expenses by $75k, for an overall reduction of 51% from the FY24 budget. The majority of the funding for this department comes from other funding sources, so the General Fund expenses are minimal.

Technology Department

The Technology Department proposed cutting salaries and benefits by $90k and eliminating a vacant Business Systems Analyst position. Operating expenses will be increased by $3.2 million, mainly due to a decision by the GRU Authority to charge more for IT services next year, an overall increase of 61.4% over the FY24 budget. 

Ramos explained that General Government has a Service Level Agreement (SLA) with GRU to provide IT support services, and that SLA has been funded at between $1.5 and $1.7 million. In FY24, GRU requested an increase to $2.9 million to better reflect expenditures, “but they feel that the number that more adequately represents what they spend on our services is $5.9 [million], and we have built that into the assumptions for FY25.”

Ramos said the City has hired a consultant to make a recommendation on whether to continue using GRU for IT services or pursue other options.

The estimates from the departments covered in this meeting are shown in the chart above and reflect an overall reduction of 10.5 positions. 

Ramos said some information is still unknown at this time, including information on homeless support services, the GSC from GRU, a number of SLAs between GRU and General Government, the property tax valuation estimates, and State revenue sharing numbers.

The next budget meeting, which will cover Police, Fire, Parks, and Public works, will be on May 28.

After the presentation, Ward echoed what several others had already said, “I don’t think any of us, probably, are interested in increasing the millage rate this year… I will remind everyone, though, that this is largely dependent on a GSC coming through from GRU Administration… I’m absolutely hopeful that that will continue.”

Ward concluded the meeting by thanking staff for the presentation, adding, “Hopefully we won’t have the worst-case scenario to work with. We’ll make sure we tell the story out in the community and move forward.”