MOUNT VERNON — On Monday, Mount Vernon City Council considered 2025 budget appropriations even as the new auditor’s staff continues to reconcile information and accounts.
Safety-service Director Tanner Salyers said the administration based the working number of $19.3 million on an estimated 2024 income of $19.5 million.
“Estimated revenue in 2025 is $20.5 million. We’re under-appropriating for what we anticipate coming in, but because of the confusion, we’re being conservative,” Salyers explained.
He could not answer Council President Bruce Hawkins’ question about the amount of the anticipated 2026 carryover.
“We feel comfortable appropriating these dollars for the priorities set for both the administration, departments, and communicating with the council for their desires,” Salyers said. “As far as giving you an idea of what our current carryover from 2024 to 2025, and especially moving forward, will be, we’re not going to spend all this money. That’s reckless.”
“We’re still struggling with getting all of the information in the auditor’s office, understanding it, and figuring it out. It’s still a daily process,” City Auditor Paul Mayville said.
“We don’t understand how the carryover is going to be, how we’re going to figure it out. There are many different things that are affecting that, and we’re working toward that every day to try to correct it. Knowing the carryover for this year is going to be challenging; knowing it for next year is going to be even more difficult.”
“We need to have a budget now, and we need to feel comfortable with what that budget is going to be. And then we’re going to have a carryover now and carryover for 2026 so that we’re comfortable where we are financially,” Hawkins said.
Figuring out past processes
Salyers said the administration can track the non-general budget, which covers dedicated funds such as gas tax revenue or license fees.
However, regarding the general fund, Salyers said it is like untangling a spaghetti plate, figuring out why things are paid specific ways and how things were done in the past. He said council members have seen recent examples when the administration had to reappropriate money from one fund into another to pay bills.
“If the money needs to be in a certain place … we need to go ahead and appropriate that cost. And we have those costs in mind,” Salyers said.
Salyers reminded council members that the budget covers the entire year. Historically, the council passed an interim budget in November or December and a supplemental budget in the first quarter of the following year.
“So if we have to have the approval of counsel to spend at least that amount, we have a good idea of what we’re spending,” he said. “That’s the direction that we’re going with this.”
More work to do
Council members gave the budget its first reading on Monday. Salyers emphasized that it is a collaborative process, and the appropriations will undergo change before council’s final approval.
“But to be as transparent and as honest as possible, we are behind because of the multitude of transitions and just trying to clean up what is essentially a mess in the auditor’s office,” he said, adding that the entire auditor’s staff is new.
“They’re being trained and they’re kicking butt, but they’re human and they can only do so much. That’s where we are and that’s the reality.”
Council members attended a work session on Thursday and scheduled a special meeting on Dec. 16 at 7:30 for a second reading of budget appropriations.
If necessary, they will schedule another work session on Thursday, Dec. 19. The budget appropriations are scheduled for a third reading at the Dec. 23 council meeting.