The Town of Fountain Hills is ready to begin a new fiscal year of operations with the approval of its final budget plan for the upcoming 2023/2024 Fiscal Year. The council voted 6-1 to approve the budget plan which begins with the new fiscal year on July 1.

The council approved a spending plan totaling $43,057,708, which includes a General Fund budget of $25,585,805; Special Revenue fund total, $9,643,912; debt service is $19,760; and the Capital Fund budget is $6,918,531. Internal service funds such as Facilities Reserve, Technology Replacement and Vehicle Replacement total $889,700.

The budget plan includes a 7% cost of living adjustment in wages for Town employees. The budget also includes a $2.5 million General Fund contingency used to put the numbers in balance.

The budget also includes $5 million in Streets Fund for pavement maintenance. Town Finance Director David Pock said this is the largest amount the Town has ever been able to dedicate to street work in a fiscal year.

The General Fund budget includes a $1.9 million increase in public safety expenses. This includes additional one-time expenses for transition of the fire department to a Town managed department as well as the new fire department personnel. There are also anticipated increases in the Town’s law enforcement contract with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.

Overall, the General Fund budget increase is 13% (4% without the public safety costs).

Pock did budget comparisons with Valley cities for the fiscal year just coming to a close. He noted that of the 19 cities surveyed, only Cave Creek and Carefree had lower budget totals. In a comparison of budget costs per capita Fountain Hills is at $1,925 per person, with only Apache Junction having a lower per capita budget.

Pock also reported that through the first 10 months of the fiscal year just coming to a close the Town had a 19% increase in local sales tax revenue. Through April the Town had collected 100% of its total FY23 budgeted sales tax revenue.

Through April the Town received $2.9 million in state shared sales tax revenues (86% of annual budget), $1.5 million in state Highway User Revenue Fund money (77% of annual projection), $4.1 million in Urban Revenue Sharing (90% of budgeted) and $956,000 in Vehicle License Tax revenue ($85% of budget).

The council has authorized $5.65 million in capital improvement projects to begin as of July 1, 2023. There is roughly an additional $1million that will be considered later by the council.

The council action also includes the budget implementation plan, organizational charts, pay plans, schedule of authorized positions, updated employee job descriptions, and comprehensive fee schedule for the coming year.

Councilman Allen Skillicorn cast the dissenting vote on the budget. He commented that Maricopa County had been able to arrive at a budget that was below its annual expenditure limitation, and he believes the Town should be able to do the same. The Town budget is a match for that state-imposed budget limitation.

Pock noted that the Town has never spent its entire approved budget.

Councilman Gerry Friedel had a compliment for staff in its handling of COVID-related federal funds. Friedel noted that the recently approved federal debt ceiling agreement has called back unspent COVID funds. The Town had budgeted that money for its public safety contracts, causing it to be spent immediately.

The 2023/2024 Fiscal Year begins on July 1.