City reports general fund near policy target; solid-waste fund shortfall noted

At the council meeting, a staff presenter (S3) summarized the April financial report and flagged the solid-waste fund’s shortfall.

S3 said the general fund’s unrestricted cash balance is around policy levels, noting the city expects business-license renewals and other large receipts in coming months to improve revenue. "If you look on page 6, you would see that in the general funds, our revenues are under," S3 said while describing the projection.

On the solid-waste account, S3 stated that the fund is "under 1,000,000 dollars" and that the city is looking at revenue increases and other possibilities to reduce expenditures. Council members discussed that ceded tipping-fee arrangements and transfers from the county have been part of the fund’s recent history; S3 said the county has been engaged in discussions for roughly six months about transfer-station operations but that options remain unsettled.

Council members did not vote on specific revenue measures during this meeting; staff said they will continue exploring changes to fees and capital-expenditure timing to avoid budget overruns.