County looking at tighter budgets

By JoAn Bjarko
North Forty News

It can't be business as usual for the next Larimer County budget because steep increases in property tax revenue are history.

Budget manager Bob Keister has sounded that warning, but it's the three elected commissioners who will have to decide how to balance expenses with revenues. To stimulate the discussion, county commissioners are asking all elected officials and department heads to show how they could cut their budgets by 10 percent.

Those budget scenarios are due the first part of September, and the county's proposed 2005 budget will be released in mid-October. The county is spending $247 million this year.

"We will look at cuts," Commissioner Kathay Rennels said. "It does not mean across-the-board cuts." She added that the county is not looking at layoffs, but some offices could choose not to fill vacancies.

To fund programs this year, the county has taken $2.8 million from its $19 million reserve fund. Larimer County has healthier reserves than most counties, Rennels noted, but it shouldn't deplete the fund until it reaches a critical level.

"Awareness is key," Keister said, adding that a reserve fund of less than $10 million would adversely affect the county's bond ratings.

Property tax revenue growth was flat in Larimer County from 1988 to 1995, Keister explained, but revenues climbed steeply from 1996 to 2004. County spending climbed in step with revenues. For example, the county has added 191 positions in the last 10 years for a total of 1,440 employees, Keister said. The county's population grew from 210,000 to 283,000 in the same timeframe.

Annual increases in taxable value peaked in 2000 at 17.8 percent, Keister said. In comparison, county officials are estimating 2 percent growth this year. Keister added that normal increases in operating costs are about 3 percent a year.

In addition to a slowdown in taxes, economic hard times at the state level have put a bigger financial burden on counties. "The state is passing programs down to the counties unfunded to balance its budget," Rennels said.

As a result, some county reserve funds are being spent this year to replace state cuts in health and human services. Commissioners boosted those budgets after public hearings on the 2004 budget. They also want to hear from citizens now about their priorities for county services in coming years.

"It's important to hear where people think their tax dollars should go," Rennels said.

The county has several open forums where local residents can comment about budgets or any other county issues. One time is Tuesday morning from 9 to 9:30 a.m. in the commissioners' conference room. There is also a time for public comment at the beginning of every land use hearing, and comments can be sent through the county's web site at www.larimer.org/budget/survey.htm.

Keister noted that the projected tight budgets have nothing to do with new construction in the past several years. Building projects such as the fairgrounds, justice center and new county offices have been funded with voter-approved sales taxes.