Angela Herzog with the state auditor’s office presented the Newton Board of Aldermen with an audit report for the 2019-2020 fiscal year last Tuesday night, in which she stated the board needed to set a goal to get the city’s general fund balanced.
“The main thing I just want to talk about is the general fund balance,” said Herzog. “I know I talked about it last year, but it’s just trying to get that fund balance back positive and not spending money from the general fund that (the city) doesn’t have or raising the revenue. I know that no one wants to raise taxes, but either the expenditures will need to be cut or raise taxes in that area.”
Herzog also reminded the board that the general and water funds should be operated separately. She said they should be operated like two separate businesses in the corporate world.
“The water can’t continue to pay expenses from the general fund or vice versa. I know occasionally they loan money back and forth and that’s OK, but the general fund has been in a deficit for several years now. The water is the one that has the money,” she told the board. “Just make it a goal to try to get the general fund back in line.” She also noted that the city had made a lot of progress in eliminating the negative balance.
The audit was accepted, and the council agreed to meet on Monday, August 15 at 5:30 p.m. to begin work on the upcoming budget. The final budget must be approved by the board by the first meeting in September.
In other business, the aldermen:
• approved the purchase cyber insurance of $100,000 for $992 per month.
• discussed changing the ordinance to amend the process of requiring mobile home skirting and the electrical inspection process due to timing of both city and health department inspections.
• approved the payment of $1,000 to fire and police officers employed with the city as of July 1, 2022 for work during the COVID-19 shutdown through state funding from the federal American Rescue Plan Act.
• approved the advertising for bids on a recycling bin with a minimum bid of $2,500.
• accepted a $2,000 donation from the United Givers Fund for Parks and Recreation.
• designated Aug. 23 for a community forum to include the Newton School Board at 5:30 p.m.
