STANTON : Budget OKd With Tax, Fee Increases

The City Council has narrowly approved a $12.5-million budget, balancing income with expenditures by laying off a city employee and raising some fees and taxes, city officials said.

The council approved the budget last week by a 3-2 vote, with Mayor Sal Sapien, Councilmen Don Martinez and Joe V. Harris voting in favor, and Councilmen David John Shawver and Harry M. Dotson voting against, City Clerk Darleen Cordova said Wednesday.

Under the new fiscal plan, some city fees will be raised as part of efforts to plug the projected $178,000 budget gap, including fees for business licenses and planning services, expected to bring in an additional $25,000.

Also, the city’s transient occupancy tax was raised from 8% to 11%, which should generate an additional $85,000. One Recreation Department employee was laid off, City Manager Terry Matz said. The city will tap into about about $28,000 in reserves to offset the remainder of the shortfall.

“We’ve made a real effort in the city budget to keep the expenditures to the minimum required to maintain the level of service established,” Matz said.

The city’s largest expense will be $3.78 million for its law-enforcement contract with the county, up from the $3.43 million for the fiscal year that ended June 30. The city will also spend about $1 million on street and storm-drain improvements over the next year.

Matz said the recession “definitely had a significant impact on our revenues, particularly sales tax and those based on business.” For instance, sales tax, the city’s biggest source of income, was estimated for the 1990-91 fiscal year at $3 million, but the city received only $2.66 million. For the new fiscal year, the city can expect $2.75 million in sales-tax revenue, Matz said.