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17 <br />SECTION 7 – CAPITAL BUDGETS <br />Purpose <br />The City is committed to long-term capital planning to ensure capital items can be added or <br />replaced capital items when needed, without significant fluctuations in the property tax levy. <br />Capital budgeting will enable the City to maintain a stable property tax rate, prevent peaks and <br />valleys in its debt retirement program, and maintain or improve its credit rating. The City’s Capital <br />Funds include: <br /> General Capital Improvement Fund (Fund 400) <br /> 10% Fund (Fund 408) <br /> Infrastructure Fund (Fund 450) <br /> Park Land Acquisition Fund (Fund 456) <br /> Fire Equipment Replacement (Fund 457) <br /> Water/Sewer Capital Replacement Fund (Fund 604) <br /> <br />Policy <br />The City’s capital planning process will include a five-year capital improvement plan (CIP). The <br />CIP will identify costs for all capital items with funding sources. These capital items will include <br />facilities, major building repairs, infrastructure improvements and replacements, furniture, <br />fixtures and equipment, vehicles, and technology upgrades. It will include all purchases with a <br />combined value of $5,000 or more, and a life expectancy of five years or more. <br />The CIP will be reviewed each year. The current year of the CIP will be incorporated in the <br />City’s annual operating budget. The remaining four years of the CIP will be used to identify and <br />schedule future capital expenditures. <br />During the annual budget process, the City Council will evaluate the proposed CIP items based on <br />the acceptability of funding sources and the financial impact on the City’s tax levy, total debt, and <br />utility rate levels. The following considerations and procedures will be used to comply with this <br />policy: <br /> The City will maintain all its assets at a level adequate to protect the City’s and its citizens’ <br />capital investment and to minimize future maintenance and replacement costs. <br /> The City staff will identify the estimated cost and potential funding sources for each capital <br />project proposal before it is submitted to the Council for approval. In that process, staff will <br />determine the most effective financing method for the proposed project. <br /> The City staff will coordinate the development of the CIP with the development of the <br />operating budget. Future operating costs associated with new capital improvements will be <br />projected and included in operating budget forecasts. <br /> The financing investment in infrastructure and equipment may be constrained by levy <br /> limits and the ability to raise property taxes. With levy limits, the use of debt may be <br /> needed to create a property tax levy outside of levy limits. <br />