MONROE - The city's 2011 budget narrowly passed on a 6 to 4 vote by Common Council members Tuesday.
Aldermen Michael Boyce, Jan Lefevre, Thurston Hanson and Kent Kallembach voted against the city's $13 million budget.
The same four aldermen also voted against the $20 million appropriations resolution, which is necessary to allow the city to make payments for itemized expenditures as set in the budget next year. Of the total $20 million in appropriations, the city's public service utilities have $5.7 million and the Tax Increment Districts have $1.4 million.
The four also voted against the resolution to raise $6 million in taxes needed to cover the gap between budgeted expenses and expected revenues.
And, as if on a roll, they voted against the Businesses Improvement District's special assessment totaling $32,500 in taxes.
Just prior to Mayor Bill Ross calling for a roll call vote on the budget, Hanson and Boyce announced they would be voting against it.
"I called for a zero percent increase, and I'm not the only one," Hanson said.
Hanson said the jobless rate is nearly 10 percent, and noted that while property assessment values have gone up, the real value of property has not. He also said county and school taxes are rising.
"I feel it is fiscally irresponsible to vote yes," he said. "There is still work to be done on this budget."
Boyce announced he also would be voting against the 2011 budget, and brought past budgetary numbers to the council floor. "I looked from 2007 through the current year 2011 at the general expenditures and debt service, the general revenues and the net tax levy," he said.
Boyce found an increase of 32 percent, from $9.9 to $13 million, in the city's general expenditures and debt service over the past five years. He also noted the city's general revenues decreased by 3 percent and the net tax levy has crawled up by 11 percent over the same period.
"The Salary and Personnel Committee is not done (with union negotiations), which is one of the largest costs," he said. "If those (wages and benefits) increase, we will have to dip into the general fund," he added.
Ron Marsh, who served as Monroe's mayor from 2006-2010, spoke at the council meeting during the public hearing on the budget.
Marsh said he attended the council's five budget meetings this fall, and said the council halted its budget process too quickly when members learned the tax rate had reached a level lower than the 2010 budget.
"I think the vote was 6 to 1 (to send the budget to a final vote), and that one vote was Boyce. He stated there were still a number of issues to be addressed, and I think he's right. There are still issues that need to be discussed," he told the council.
Marsh was one of three people from the public attending the hearing - and the only one who spoke.
The 2011 budget is $13,077,355, about $61,000 less than the 2010 budget of $13,138,297.
The total tax levy for 2011 will be $6.15 million, about $46,500 more than - or a .76 percent increase from - the $6.104 million levied in 2010.
The property tax rate for 2011 will be $9.73 per $1,000 of property value, 4 cents less than the rate in 2010.
The decrease in the tax rate takes into account an increase of $7.5 million in property values. The total amount of property values in the City of Monroe rose to $631.8 million for 2010, up from $624.3 million in 2009.
The owner of a house assessed at $100,000 can expect to pay about $973 in city taxes next year. The owner of property assessed at $300,000 will pay $2,919.
The city anticipates less revenue across the board for 2011 - including revenues from state shared taxes and interest on investments - than in 2010. The revenue line dropped about $78,000 from $4.044 million in 2010 to $3.967 million for 2011.
Aldermen Michael Boyce, Jan Lefevre, Thurston Hanson and Kent Kallembach voted against the city's $13 million budget.
The same four aldermen also voted against the $20 million appropriations resolution, which is necessary to allow the city to make payments for itemized expenditures as set in the budget next year. Of the total $20 million in appropriations, the city's public service utilities have $5.7 million and the Tax Increment Districts have $1.4 million.
The four also voted against the resolution to raise $6 million in taxes needed to cover the gap between budgeted expenses and expected revenues.
And, as if on a roll, they voted against the Businesses Improvement District's special assessment totaling $32,500 in taxes.
Just prior to Mayor Bill Ross calling for a roll call vote on the budget, Hanson and Boyce announced they would be voting against it.
"I called for a zero percent increase, and I'm not the only one," Hanson said.
Hanson said the jobless rate is nearly 10 percent, and noted that while property assessment values have gone up, the real value of property has not. He also said county and school taxes are rising.
"I feel it is fiscally irresponsible to vote yes," he said. "There is still work to be done on this budget."
Boyce announced he also would be voting against the 2011 budget, and brought past budgetary numbers to the council floor. "I looked from 2007 through the current year 2011 at the general expenditures and debt service, the general revenues and the net tax levy," he said.
Boyce found an increase of 32 percent, from $9.9 to $13 million, in the city's general expenditures and debt service over the past five years. He also noted the city's general revenues decreased by 3 percent and the net tax levy has crawled up by 11 percent over the same period.
"The Salary and Personnel Committee is not done (with union negotiations), which is one of the largest costs," he said. "If those (wages and benefits) increase, we will have to dip into the general fund," he added.
Ron Marsh, who served as Monroe's mayor from 2006-2010, spoke at the council meeting during the public hearing on the budget.
Marsh said he attended the council's five budget meetings this fall, and said the council halted its budget process too quickly when members learned the tax rate had reached a level lower than the 2010 budget.
"I think the vote was 6 to 1 (to send the budget to a final vote), and that one vote was Boyce. He stated there were still a number of issues to be addressed, and I think he's right. There are still issues that need to be discussed," he told the council.
Marsh was one of three people from the public attending the hearing - and the only one who spoke.
The 2011 budget is $13,077,355, about $61,000 less than the 2010 budget of $13,138,297.
The total tax levy for 2011 will be $6.15 million, about $46,500 more than - or a .76 percent increase from - the $6.104 million levied in 2010.
The property tax rate for 2011 will be $9.73 per $1,000 of property value, 4 cents less than the rate in 2010.
The decrease in the tax rate takes into account an increase of $7.5 million in property values. The total amount of property values in the City of Monroe rose to $631.8 million for 2010, up from $624.3 million in 2009.
The owner of a house assessed at $100,000 can expect to pay about $973 in city taxes next year. The owner of property assessed at $300,000 will pay $2,919.
The city anticipates less revenue across the board for 2011 - including revenues from state shared taxes and interest on investments - than in 2010. The revenue line dropped about $78,000 from $4.044 million in 2010 to $3.967 million for 2011.