When Iola officials set up their annual spending plans, a new policy likely will dictate how much they can use out of utility fund reserves.
City council members approved a policy, 6-2, that says the city “shall have” between 25 to 50 percent of their utility fund budgets in reserve, enough to operate the individual funds for three to six months without other revenue sources.
Council members favored a policy that mandates the reserve instead of simply setting those benchmarks as a goal.
The wording change is significant, Councilman Ken Rowe said, because budget planners otherwise would not be held accountable if utility funds ran dry or if too much was transferred to the city’s general fund.
The new policy could lead to either budget cuts or added revenue through property tax hikes, Rowe said.
The wording was debated among Rowe, Kendall Callahan and Joel Wicoff.
Callahan and Rowe said the policy should read “shall” to put more teeth in the policy. They pointed to an email from a staffer at the accounting firm of Swindoll, Janzen, Hawk and Loyd recommending the stronger language, while incorporating provisions for emergency transfers. The accounting firm is the city’s new auditor.
Wicoff, meanwhile, pointed to a second email from Scot Loyd of the same accounting firm, who said “goal” should be used because it gives the city more flexibility.
Neither accountant said the city should have any kind of penalty assessed if the reserve standards are not met, noting it would not make sense for the city to penalize itself for not adhering to its own policy.
The city supplements its general fund coffers with utility fund reserves in lieu of higher property taxes.
Wicoff was joined by Councilman Donald Becker in voting against the policy. Others voting with Rowe and Callahan were Jim Kilby, Scott Stewart, Beverly Franklin and Steve French.
City Administrator Carl Slaugh said he would write up a provision allowing for exceptions in cases of emergencies.
THE COUNCIL approved the purchase of new head-mounted cameras to be worn by Iola police officers while in the line of duty.
The AXON FLEX video recording system will record practically everything an officer sees and hears while responding to calls, Police Chief Jared Warner said, and can be used as evidence.
The price of the system, $18,057.80 for the first year, and about $14,000 annually after that, will pay for itself in short order, City Attorney Chuck Apt said, in the amount of time the video recordings will save in responding to complaints and filing reports.
The system will be paid for by the city, with $5,000 being contributed by County Attorney Wade Bowie, using Bowie’s diversion agreement fund.
