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Hoover officials identify $2 million more in potential budget cuts for 2020

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Photo by Jon Anderson

Hoover officials say they have identified another $2 million worth of cuts to make to the city’s 2020 budget to help make up for expected tax revenue shortfalls related to the COVID-19 outbreak.

City Administrator Allan Rice on Monday night shared the additional potential cuts, including nearly $1.9 million in capital projects, with the Hoover City Council.

New potential capital cuts, identified with assistance from Councilman Curt Posey, include:

Rice also said city staff had identified about $69,000 in money left over from other capital projects, another $107,551 that could be saved by not filling vacant positions and another $25,199 that could be saved with event cancellations.

All those cuts are in addition to $7.7 million in capital projects and $3.5 million in operating expenses the mayor’s office shared as potential budget cuts a week ago. That puts the grand total of potential cuts identified so far at almost $13.2 million, “and we’re not done,” Rice said.

City staff members will continue to look for expenses to cut to try to get expenditure reductions to at least $15 million, if not more, Rice said.

Hoover’s Revenue Department has projected the city will lose anywhere from $8 million to $15 million in tax revenue due to business shutdowns associated with the COVID-19 outbreak.

The mayor’s office originally said it would shoot for a midpoint of finding $11.5 million in expenses to cut and make more budget reductions if necessary. But council members said they’d rather plan for $15 million in cuts and add money back into the budget if revenue shortfalls don’t reach the top end of projections.

The projects being cut are all good projects the mayor and council both favored, but the city must plan to live within its means, Rice said. City officials plan to revisit those projects as revenues return to a more normal level.

REOPENING BUSINESSES

Mayor Frank Brocato on Monday night said he and his staff have been talking to members of the task forces established by Gov. Kay Ivey and President Donald Trump and they are working toward reopening businesses in the state and country.

“As we open businesses, the openings will be based on science that justify the safety and health of the workers and patrons of that business,” Brocato said.

The mayor said he also is establishing a Hoover task force to examine the reopening of city facilities. The city will not act outside of the recommendations of health officials, Brocato said.

“We, too, want to make sure the safety of our citizens and employees that serve them are protected,” he said.

In a statement issued Friday, Brocato said he grew up as the son of a small business owner and understands that businesses are the lifeblood of the economy.

“We need to move as rapidly as possible — in a safe and responsible way — to restore our business community to full activity,” Brocato said. “People depend on the goods and services that our businesses provide, and our residents depend on the income they receive from an honest day’s work.”

Further, he understands that the city cannot provide basic functions such as police and fire protection, parks and recreation and library services without the inflow of revenue that businesses generate.

He applauded the report released Friday by the Alabama Small Business Emergency Task Force and said its recommendations provide a smart road map for restoring economic health.

“I urge Gov. Ivey and the state health officer to review these recommendations and act as quickly as possible — with the safety and prosperity of all Alabamians in mind — to implement them,” Brocato said.

In other business Monday night, the City Council:

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