(Atlantic) The Atlantic City Council held a public hearing and adopted the Proposed FY 2021 Maximum Property Tax Dollars at their meeting Wednesday evening.
There were no written or oral comments. The total maximum levy for affected property tax levies is $2,925,878. The Maximum Property Tax dollars requested in the total maximum levy for affected property tax levies for FY2021 represents greater than 102% of the Maximum Property Tax dollars requested for the current FY 2021.
Later in the meeting, City Administrator John Lund gave an overview of the FY 2021 Budget.
Lund said not a whole lot is really changing with this budget, but in the future there could be some bigger changes in activities going on.
Lund said the tax levy is going down from $16.86 to $16.56.
Lund also noted that labor costs are going up and employee benefits are going up because “health insurance is expensive”. Lund said he is not recommending changes to storm water utility rates; however they do expect rate increases down the road. In the end, Lund said overall he is optimistic, but cautious. He said they are approaching things with strength, but he worries about retail trends and mentioned that they need to work with the Chamber and CADCO to bring in growth.
In other news, the Council held a Public Hearing on a proposal to enter into a General Obligation Solid Waste Management Loan agreement and Providing for the Levy of Taxes to Pay Same. The City is a member of a 28E organization that operates the Cass County Landfill. The City is required to support the Landfill financially, if the Landfill determines it is necessary. The Landfill has instituted a per-capita fee of $12.00 per resident to be assessed annually. The amount shall be $85,344, payable in four equal payments over the course of the fiscal year. The proposal to enter into a loan agreement and to borrow money thereunder in a principal amount not to exceed $90,000 for the purpose of paying the costs of funding the construction of solid waste disposal facilities and improvements was approved.
The Council also set March 4th as the date for a public hearing on a proposal to enter into a General Obligation Refunding Loan Agreement and to borrow money thereunder in a principal amount not to exceed $2,250,000. The City of Atlantic previously issued its $4,950,000 General Obligation Corporate Purpose Refunding Bonds dated March 28, 2012, a portion of which remains outstanding, maturing on June 1 in each of the years. This action will be to refinance the debt for a lower interest rate resulting in a savings of $50,000.
