If you live in Saint Paul you’ll see your property tax bill rise again next year. The only question is by how much, and that depends on what happens in the upcoming special session at the Capitol.
In his annual budget address today, Mayor Chris Coleman said the time had come to make tough choices about city services and honesty in dealing with a $16 million budget gap.
“You know if we tell people they can get something for nothing they’ll believe us,” Coleman told a packed house at the Minnesota History Center auditorium.
“We have to put away the credit card. We should pay for current costs with current resources and not put those costs on our children.”
Mayor Coleman laid out two budget scenarios labeled “Plan A” and “Plan B” for simplicity. The best case, Plan A, depends on lawmakers restoring the local government aid boost that Governor Pawlenty vetoed during the 2007 session.
That scenario would still result in a seven percent increase in the property tax levy, with the average household paying an extra $30 – $90 depending on their assessed valuation next year. But if there’s no more help from the Capitol this year, Saint Paul is left with “Plan B” and double the hike in city taxes.
“Minnesotans deserve property tax relief and they deserve it now,” Coleman said expressing hope that state lawmakers will consider more than just transportation in the special session sparked by the collapse of the 35-W bridge in St Paul.
Coleman estimated the city has lost $108 million in state aid since 2003, based on historic trends prior to the state’s fiscal crisis. Rising costs of services, coupled with a long-term goal of improving public safety and services for children, have left the city with a $16 million gap heading into this budget cycle.
In addition to cuts in state aid, Coleman also blamed his predecessors for keeping the lid on tax levies for 11 years running.
“Our city was bled dry,” Coleman lamented.
“The St Paul where you and I grew up in became a city that bucked our obligations to our children and our community.”
Coleman’s budget plan envisions hiring 25 new police officers, or 13 new officers, if the state aid doesn’t come through. The target Coleman has set is 650 officers by the year 2010, but he also wants to see a review of how those officers are deployed.
Chief John Harrington said it’s a review that’s been a long time in coming.
“When I came on the job we had 570 cops, nobody ever thought we’d be over that number,” Harrington told reporters.
“We have to ask what are you going to do with all those extra cops? That’s a huge increase in the department’s size. That’s a huge increase in the department’s budget, and I really want to make sure I’m putting those officers where they are going to be the most effective.”
The Mayor’s budget blueprint also involves some reshuffling in staffing of rec centers, including some of the center now owned by St Paul Public Schools.
Under Plan A the city would keep operating 33 rec centers, but with Plan B it would be 31. One of the centers facing the chopping block is the Orchard Rec Center at Orchard Ave and Victoria Street.
But Coleman was adamant that the city’s libraries all remain open and that their hours be untouched.
“We must stand together and make the tough choices that will move our city forward. We must stand together for our children and for St Paul.”
Governor Pawlenty has stated on several occasions that he prefers to limit the special session to transportation issues. On the other hand he has signaled support for increasing state aid to cities.
He said in June the main reason he vetoed the LGA legislation was because it was part of a tax bill that required inflation be figured into the state’s budget forecasts.
So Saint Paul may get Plan A, Plan B or something in between.
By John Croman, KARE
