City Council to Hold Budget Workshop Focused on Service Priorities

SUISUN CITY, Calif. – Faced with making $1.4 million in additional budget reductions on the heels of 35% budget cuts in recent years, the Suisun City Council will hold a public budget workshop at 6 p.m. Tuesday, September 20, at City Hall. >> map >>

While Suisun City has avoided significant service reductions, layoffs and furloughs during the national economic downturn, the additional 13% reduction in the City’s budget forced by recent State action will undoubtedly impact future service levels, City officials said.

In June, the State enacted two laws that changed the way redevelopment functions in California. Whether the Suisun City Redevelopment Agency is eliminated entirely or modified as required by the State, the City will face an approximate $1.4 million budget shortfall starting in July 2012.

Though a lawsuit is pending in the California Supreme Court challenging the constitutionality of those laws, the City Council wants to begin discussing budget cuts that will be necessary if legal challenges fail.

Among the issues to be discussed during the Tuesday night workshop are

• The basic structure of the City’s budget.
• The strategy of selling select fixed assets and reducing spending that preserved public services thus far during a significant economic downturn, which has forced other cities to slash budgets and programs.
• The State’s decision to end Redevelopment as it previously existed during a prolonged economic slide that has forced the City to face very difficult decisions, and its impact on Suisun City.
• An array of budget changes that could reach $1.4 million.
• Service level priorities that will help guide future decision-making.

Given the severity of the challenges that lie ahead, the City Council wants the public to provide input to help prioritize services that are most important to Suisun City residents.  The City Council may set additional workshops in the future.

The workshop agenda and supporting information will be posted online by Thursday evening to www.Suisun.com.

Draft FY 2011-12 City Budget Now Available

SUISUN CITY, Calif. - The Administrative Services Department has released the draft FY 2011-12 city budget for review ahead of the City Council's consideration of the spending plan on Tuesday, June 21.

The budget can be located at the City web site ( www.suisun.com ) by following the City Hall tab and navigating down to Financial Reports under the Administrative Services Department header.
>> Click here to go straight there >>

As City Manager Suzanne Bragdon notes in her budget message, there are a number of important themes taken into consideration while developing the balanced budget:

We continue to live through historic economic times that cause both tremendous challenges and unique opportunities.

The County Assessor has indicated an "expectation" that average, county-wide assessed values will decline by 3%; the fourth straight year of property value declines.

The City's short- and long-term priority continues to be fiscal stability, which means the City needs to:

• Be prudent in the use of one-time monies that have been used to "bridge" operations until known economic development efforts come on-line (e.g., the Wal-Mart Supercenter).
• Continue to trim operating budgets while utilizing alternative approaches to filling vacancies (e.g., cross-management, cross-training and contracting out). The budget assumes eight vacant positions remain unfilled, which is roughly 10% of the City workforce.
• Position the City for new development opportunities when the economy does turn around.
• Maintain a strong eye on reserves; for FY 2011-12 General Fund reserves are at roughly 25%.
• Continue to provide City's business community and residents with the highest level and quality of services possible.

City service focus in on all segments of the community - services and programs that support long-term economic vitality, strong and safe neighborhoods, and a community that is a desirable place to visit, live, work and raise a family.

>> Click here for the complete budget message >>

Suisun City RDA Delivers $1.3 million to State as Required

PAYMENT LAST INSTALLMENT OF $2.05 BILLION STATE RAID ON LOCAL COFFERS

SUISUN CITY, Calif. — The Suisun City Redevelopment Agency this week sent $1.278 million in local funds to the Solano County Auditor as the second installment in it’s share of the $2.05 billion State raid passed by the State Legislature in 2009.

Redevelopment agencies across California were required to forward $350 million on May 10 to cover the State’s obligations to trial courts. Last year, redevelopment agencies paid a total of $1.7 billion to cover State budget spending.

In 2010, the Suisun City Redevelopment Agency paid $5.7 million to the State.

The California Redevelopment Association has filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of ABX4-26, the State budget trailer bill passed in July 2009 as that authorized the $2.05 billion raid of local redevelopment funds to use for State purposes. The lawsuit is under appeal at the Court of Appeals.

“Losing this money is challenging. The proposed elimination of redevelopment by the Governor, is even worse. These actions by the State cripple our ability to build and expand our City’s economy,” said City Manager Suzanne Bragdon. “By taking our local funds, the State is not only harming us, but is likewise hindering the overall economic recovery of the State. Redevelopment is the State’s economic development engine.”

Suisun City uses redevelopment funds generated by the success of our revitalization efforts to pay for programs and support the establishment of new businesses and jobs such as

• Hampton Inn & Suites on the Waterfront
• Harbor Square – a mixed use project of restaurants, entertainment venues and office space
• First-Time Homebuyer Program and Neighborhood Reinvestment Program
• Suisun City Library.

This payment comes at a time when Gov. Jerry Brown wants to abolish redevelopment agencies altogether. A broad coalition of local government, business and labor has successfully fought the proposal and, thus far, the Governor has failed to garner enough votes. The coalition warns that abolishing redevelopment agencies would result in the loss of more than 300,000 private-sector jobs and billions in economic activity annually statewide.

“Redevelopment is a vital tool to create local jobs, reduce crime, build affordable housing, clean up contaminated toxic sites, and otherwise transform rundown, blighted communities in need,” said John Shirey, executive director, California Redevelopment Association. “Redevelopment is one of the only tools local governments have to put people to work. Continued State raids of local funds are not only illegal, but they make no fiscal sense at a time when we should be emphasizing job-creation.”

For more information about the Governor’s proposal and the coalition fighting to stop this illegal and fiscally reckless proposal visit www.ProtectOurLocalEconomy.com.

Redevelopment Success Story

SUISUN CITY — Since January, City staff has told the story of Suisun City’s redevelopment success over and over from Sacramento to multiple local groups and all points in between.

As Gov. Jerry Brown tried to close the State’s gaping $26.6 billion budget shortfall, he proposed eliminating the nearly 400 local redevelopment agencies (also known as RDAs) across California, among a host of other moves.

While estimated to generate an unrealistic $1.7 billion next fiscal year for the State, the RDA proposal would create a budget hole of roughly 10% for Suisun City. It also would end the single most important tool the City has used to transform itself into high quality community in which to live, raise a family and visit.

While City leaders continue to work with State officials about alternate budget proposals (see “Gov. Brown vs. RDA”), it’s important to remember just how Suisun City became a redevelopment success story.

SUISUN CITY’S STORY

In 1987, the San Francisco Chronicle labeled Suisun City as the worst city in the Bay Area. At that point, the City was spending upwards of 70% of its entire police budget on the Crescent neighborhood, and the historic waterfront was charitably considered an industrial backwater with little to no public access.

Though the City Council had designated the waterfront as a redevelopment zone, the unflattering attention kicked the local effort into high gear. The historic waterfront would once again become an economic engine for Suisun City.

Using tools of redevelopment first created in the 1940s, Suisun City

• Invested $65 million in blight elimination and infrastructure, including the entire Marina and Promenade
• Replaced dilapidated housing units with modern homes
• Created 326 affordable housing units
• Preserved and refurbished the Train Station
• Constructed the Nelson Community Center
• Established the Lambrecht Sports Complex to replace Todd Park’s ball fields
• Constructed the Civic Center
  

The results are seen across Suisun City:

• The crime rate has dropped 60% since redevelopment started
• Money created by the increased property values was provided to the Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District to help refurbish or rebuild every school campus in Suisun City
• New business ventures that return sales taxes to the community have launched and been sustained by loyal customers
• The Suisun City Library was built thanks to a redevelopment loan that filled a financing gap
  

DEFENDING RDA

Redevelopment is the State’s best method of stimulating and expanding the economy and creating 300,000 construction jobs annually. For cities, like Suisun City, it’s the only way to expand the local economy, providing both goods and services to residents, and capturing sales and other taxes necessary to pay for core City services.

To protect this tool, Suisun City joined with local businesses, chambers of commerce, economic development commissions, residents, the League of California Cities and California Redevelopment Association to oppose Gov. Brown’s proposal to eliminate RDA. The Redevelopment Association and League went further to develop and support an alternative to keep Redevelopment intact while providing nearly $1 billion to schools, which indirectly assists the State budget.

The effort has paid off so far. Several reform proposals are moving forward to address public accountability and other concerns, but most importantly Gov. Brown’s proposal to eliminate redevelopment FAILED by one vote in the State Assembly.

We will continue to work with legislators on solutions that allow the State to meet its obligations, supports local economic development and helps other local agencies meet their goals.

To stay updated on our efforts, follow us on Twitter.

READ MORE

• From the City Manager - "It's the Economy Stupid!"
• Gov. Brown vs RDA

Published in Suisun City Discovery Newsletter - April 2011

Suisun City Redevelopment Agency Forced to Pay $5.7 Million to State in Raid of Local Funds

PAYMENT WILL DAMAGE AGENCY'S ABILITY TO EXPAND LOCAL ECONOMY

SUISUN CITY — The Suisun City Redevelopment Agency today was forced to turn over $5.7 million to the Solano County Auditor, a required payment resulting from the State’s decision to raid $2.05 billion in local redevelopment funds as part of the 2009-10 State Budget. Instead of going to fund local job creation, economic growth and urban revitalization projects, this money will now be siphoned off to help pay the State’s obligations.

The payment was made in accordance with a ruling by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Lloyd Connelly last week that instructed local redevelopment agencies to abide by the provisions of ABX4-26 passed last year as part of the State budget. The bill allows the State to take $2.05 billion in redevelopment funding to use for State obligations. The California Redevelopment Association (CRA) is appealing the Superior Court ruling to the Court of Appeal.

The Redevelopment Agency Board had directed Suisun City Economic Development staff to wait until the latest possible deadline to forward the money.

“Losing this money is going to devastate our ability to build and expand our City’s economy,” said City Manager Suzanne Bragdon. “By taking our local funds, the State is preventing us from investing in local projects that are vital to the residents and businesses of Suisun City.”

“Loss of these funds comes during one of the worst declines in local property values and related revenues that we’ve ever seen,” said City Manager Bragdon. “The worst part is Sacramento will be back next year for another $1.7 million from our Redevelopment Agency. Unless the courts reverse this protocol, we’re afraid that the State will eventually take all of our redevelopment resources, effectively bankrupting the most powerful tool we have to build our community.”

In the past 20 years, the Suisun City Redevelopment Agency has been the primary force in

• Rebuilding the Suisun City Marina
• Removing severely blighted and crime-ridden neighborhoods near the Waterfront
• Rebuilding the Waterfront District
• Providing key funding for the Suisun City Library
• Constructing the Nelson Community Center
• Constructing the Lambrecht Sports Complex
• Renovating the Harbor Theater
• Constructing the Delta Cove, Victorian Harbor and Harbor Park neighborhoods
• Renovated the Suisun City Train Station
• Funding the First-Time Homebuyer and Neighborhood Revitalization programs and
• Dozens of other projects

“Sending this money to the State means we won’t be able to do these types of projects any longer,” said Economic Development Director Jason Garben.

>>Read More on this Issue >>

State Budget Gimmicks to Hammer City Services

Local service cuts are nearly 20% of State’s “solution”

SUISUN CITY — The proposed State budget compromise would raid three sources of funding essential to providing necessary public services in Suisun City, and includes at least one maneuver that a state court has ruled to be unconstitutional.

“This state budget seems to be a repeat of prior magical acts by our confused legislators, using accounting gimmicks detested by accountants like me,” Mayor Pete Sanchez said. “It’s just a repeat of the usual ‘kicking the can’ down the road to handle another day.”

The budget compromise reached by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Legislative leaders relies on tapping local funding sources, including:

• Borrowing $2 billion in Prop. 1A funding, which the State plans to repay in 2013;
• Diverting $1 billion in gas taxes used for local road maintenance; and
• Taking $1.7 billion in redevelopment funding earmarked for affordable housing projects.

Of the $26.3 billion budget gap the state needed to close, the compromise reached by the Governor and Legislative leaders would take $4.7 billion from local governments.

“We have all faced the challenges of the downturned economy,” City Manager Suzanne Bragdon said. “Now local governments have to deal with the downturned economy and the State’s mess? Twenty percent of the state’s mess! Give me a break!”

For Suisun City, this translates to

• $285,000 from the General Fund – Monies to pay for police, fire, senior services, recreation programs and park maintenance;
• $470,000 in gas taxes — Monies to repair pot holes, maintain street lights, provide litter control, and other basic road maintenance; and
• an uncertain amount from redevelopment funds that could exceed $4 million.

In adopting its balanced $12 million budget for FY 2009-10, the Suisun City Council put $285,000 into a special contingency fund to protect against state action. Rather than augmenting the Police Department, Recreation or Public Works, the Council established a defense against the State.

But there is no defense against the State taking gas taxes. If adopted, this measure will strip away more than two-thirds of the money Suisun City uses to fill pot holes, repair streetlights, perform litter control and other routine roadway maintenance. Nearly half of the remaining $150,000 pays the PG&E bill to keep streetlights burning.

On June 16, 2009, the Suisun City Council adopted a resolution opposing the state proposal to take gas taxes.

Officials are working to quantify the potential impact on the Redevelopment Agency Affordable Housing Fund, but it could be enormous. The state proposes to take $1.7 billion statewide over the next two fiscal years. Last fall, when the state proposed to take $350 million statewide, the Suisun City Redevelopment Agency stood to lose $1.1 million.

“Assuming similar formulas are used this time around, our RDA losses could be more than $4 million,” City Manager Suzanne Bragdon said.

Most recently, Suisun City has used affordable housing money to provide loans to build the Cottonwood Creek affordable housing complex and create a first-time homebuyer program to return foreclosed properties to private ownership.

In April, the Sacramento Superior Court blocked the state’s earlier $350 million RDA shift when it ruled that it was an unconstitutional use of redevelopment funds.

Wise Choices Buoy Suisun City

Mayor Pete Sanchez wrote the following Letter to the Editor of the Daily Republic as an update of the City's fiscal situation:

Given the difficult financial environment everyone is facing today, Suisun City is fortunate to be holding its own when it comes to finances.

While the feds are balancing their budget by printing money, while our governor balances the state budget by borrowing on future lottery revenues, Suisun City leaders are balancing the city budget the old fashioned way: first we make an inventory of the small funds we have, then we conservatively estimate the small amounts we might collect, then we simply make wise decisions on where, when and how much to spend, while keeping more than 20 percent of our money in reserves, for expected rainy days.

I'm extremely proud of the tough financial decisions the Suisun City Council made in my 12 years as councilmember and, more so, in my past two years as mayor. Our city manager and management staff have been prudent, contributing to our vision of financial stability. Our employees have been truly patient, sharing in the sacrifices, making do with smaller salaries than their counterparts in nearby cities. Our residents understood there is this need to wait for street improvements and public infrastructures.

Our fire department, made up of only three salaried firefighters and more than 30 volunteers, deserve special mention for more than $1 million of annual savings to the city.

Suisun City's long term plans call for prudent spending and aggressive partnering with businesses who are bullish on Suisun's future. The new hotel opens in September, a new restaurant opens in spring and Walmart is on the pipeline. Those three projects combined will generate 10 percent more revenue to the city.

All of us in the city are mindful of the difficult times ahead. But we are thankful that we are not expecting cuts in public service, we are not laying off employees, and we are still moving ahead with public works projects.

Pete Sanchez
Mayor

Hands Off Our Budget!

STATE MUST MAKE TOUGH CHOICES, BALANCE BUDGET!

CUT UP THE 'LOCAL GOVERNMENT' CREDIT CARD!

The Suisun City Council delivered a clear message to the State Capitol on Tuesday night: Keep your mitts off our money!

While Suisun City, and other local governments across California, made tough political decisions to balance their budgets by July 1- as required by state law - the California Legislature has yet to do its constitutionally defined job of passing the State budget.

But the folks in the Capitol have managed to identify sources of funding that local governments rely upon that could be tapped to 'solve' the State's budget problem.

"The State, one again, is threatening to attack cities in order to balance their budget mess," Vice Mayor Jane Day said. "We have worked hard over the past few years to put our financial house in order.

"Instead of making the same hard decisions, the State is threatening to attack our finances - take our revenues - and toss us in the red," Day said. "This is not acceptable!"

State leaders are proposing to use provisions in Prop. 1A and Prop. 42 (transportation funds) that allow "borrowing" local government shares in times of "emergency," commonly defined as fire, flood, earthquake and the like. Not a political unwillingness to reach compromise and pass a balanced budget!

"The voters of this state have consistently voted to protect local resources from takeaways by the State," said City Council member Mike Segala, who also is a member of the League of California Cities Board of Directors. "Voters supported local revenue protection in 2004 when they approved Prop. 1A by more than 80%."

"The State seems to keep coming up with more innovative ways to avoid its obligation to adopt a structurally balanced budget by diverting local revenues," Segala said. "Already, the State has taken more than $3.5 milllion from Suisun City."

Under the current proposals in Sacramento, Suisun City stands to lose $1.2 million in the current budget year, including:

• $250,000 in transportation funds, which pays for road maintenance and Public Works operations


• $250,000 from the General Fund, the equivilent of 2 police officers, or 10% of our sworn police force


• $700,000 from the Redevelopment Agency, or 98% of our unencumbered budget that we use to support businesses, community amenities, neighborhood reinvestment and economic development

The City Council unanimously adopted a resolution Tuesday night that reads, in part,

"The City Council of the City of Suisun City hereby opposes any and all efforts by state government to 'borrow' or seize local tax funds, redevelopment tax increment and transportation sales tax funds by the state government to finance state operations. Such a move would be fiscally irresponsible for the state and hamper effective local services and infrastructure investment."

The City Council also led a ceremonial cutting of the "Bank of Local Government" credit card that the State continually uses to finance its lack of discipline.

YOU CAN HELP

Contact your state representatives to let them know how you feel about how the State handles its budget problems. In Suisun City, our legislators are

• Assemblymember Lois Wolk, who has supported protecting local government, 916-319-2008; assemblymember.wolk@assembly.ca.gov
• State Sen. Michael Machado, 916-651-4005; senator.machado@sen.ca.gov
• Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has supported protecting local government, 916-445-2841