MONROE - Even with at least a half-million dollars yet to be cut from the budget, it may be another year before any Monroe city government jobs will be lost.
"I feel for this year we're in good shape, if we take the sharp cuts we need to and still provide the services," Alderman Mark Coplien said.
"But 2011 will probably be the year that employees come into play. That's speculation, at this point. A new governor could make all the difference in the world, but I doubt it," he added.
Coplien is a member of the Finance and Taxation Committee, which meets at 6 p.m. Monday at Monroe City Hall. Its only agenda item is to review and discuss, and possibly take action, on the proposed 2010 budget.
Alderman Charles Koch, chairman of the Public Safety Committee and member of the Finance and Taxation Committee, said he doesn't see next year's budget affecting his committee.
Koch said the Public Safety Committee is considering ways to replace a $44,000 loss in revenue from parking fines downtown, where meters have been removed. Police Chief Fred Kelley said his department anticipates about $7,000 in revenue from selling registration and temporary plates, a new program started earlier this year.
"It's hard to know, because we've never done it before," he said.
One bit of relief for police and fire chiefs is a provision in Wisconsin Act 28, Kelley said, which prompts municipalities to leave service budgets intact because those that make cuts in fire and police department spending face reduced state revenue sharing.
Monroe already will receive about $51,000 less in shared revenues in 2010 as a result of the state budget approved by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Jim Doyle in June.
The City of Monroe is looking at a $525,000 budget deficit. From a preliminary look at the 2010 budget, two of the largest budget needs is $46,700 for the office of the city administrator and $56,000 for the office of building inspector.
The city administrator office budget is tentatively being set at $102,700, but about $54,000 is being cut from the legal costs to help cover the legal duties of the administrator, Coplien said. Council members hope to have an administrator in place by early 2010.
Last year, Monroe cut about $450,000 from the budget, most of it by eliminating the city administrator position ($105,500), halting new sidewalk construction ($100,000) and using $188,600 of its $210,000 in debt service to stay under $5.8 million, for a 2 percent levy increase.
But debt service allowances used one year must be deducted from the net need the following year, making it harder to keep up with rising prices. The 2010 tax levy must be reduced by the $188,000 debt service allowance used in 2009.
City Treasurer Cathy Maurer would like to get the debt service reduced in future years.
"I feel for this year we're in good shape, if we take the sharp cuts we need to and still provide the services," Alderman Mark Coplien said.
"But 2011 will probably be the year that employees come into play. That's speculation, at this point. A new governor could make all the difference in the world, but I doubt it," he added.
Coplien is a member of the Finance and Taxation Committee, which meets at 6 p.m. Monday at Monroe City Hall. Its only agenda item is to review and discuss, and possibly take action, on the proposed 2010 budget.
Alderman Charles Koch, chairman of the Public Safety Committee and member of the Finance and Taxation Committee, said he doesn't see next year's budget affecting his committee.
Koch said the Public Safety Committee is considering ways to replace a $44,000 loss in revenue from parking fines downtown, where meters have been removed. Police Chief Fred Kelley said his department anticipates about $7,000 in revenue from selling registration and temporary plates, a new program started earlier this year.
"It's hard to know, because we've never done it before," he said.
One bit of relief for police and fire chiefs is a provision in Wisconsin Act 28, Kelley said, which prompts municipalities to leave service budgets intact because those that make cuts in fire and police department spending face reduced state revenue sharing.
Monroe already will receive about $51,000 less in shared revenues in 2010 as a result of the state budget approved by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Jim Doyle in June.
The City of Monroe is looking at a $525,000 budget deficit. From a preliminary look at the 2010 budget, two of the largest budget needs is $46,700 for the office of the city administrator and $56,000 for the office of building inspector.
The city administrator office budget is tentatively being set at $102,700, but about $54,000 is being cut from the legal costs to help cover the legal duties of the administrator, Coplien said. Council members hope to have an administrator in place by early 2010.
Last year, Monroe cut about $450,000 from the budget, most of it by eliminating the city administrator position ($105,500), halting new sidewalk construction ($100,000) and using $188,600 of its $210,000 in debt service to stay under $5.8 million, for a 2 percent levy increase.
But debt service allowances used one year must be deducted from the net need the following year, making it harder to keep up with rising prices. The 2010 tax levy must be reduced by the $188,000 debt service allowance used in 2009.
City Treasurer Cathy Maurer would like to get the debt service reduced in future years.