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Record of Proceedings

Gulfport City Council Meeting: September 18, 2023 - Millage Rate and Budget Adoption

City Council — Monday, September 18, 2023
BodyGulfport, Mississippi
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, September 18, 2023
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 17:20

Original source
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4:28

To the regular City Council meeting for Gulfport, Florida for September eighteenth, twenty twenty-three.

4:33

Our invocation tonight is given by Vice Mayor Paul Ray, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

5:00

Under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

5:03

Thanks for the help.

5:04

Well done.

5:08

Vice Mayor Ray.

5:09

Stephen Coban.

5:12

Vice Mayor Ray.

5:13

Here.

5:14

Councilmember O'Hara.

5:15

Here.

5:16

Councilmember Thanos.

5:17

Here.

5:17

Councilmember Brown.

5:18

Here.

5:18

Mayor Henderson.

5:19

Here.

5:20

City Attorney Salzman.

5:21

Here.

5:21

City Manager O'Reilly.

5:22

Here.

5:23

City Clerk Carico present.

5:25

All right.

5:26

So again, we have the second reading of our uh two ordinances for the millagerate for 2023, 2024 fiscal year, as well as the budget itself.

5:35

So we'll go ahead and begin with ordinance number 2023-10, second reading.

5:39

Ordinance 2023-10, second reading and public hearing, an ordinance of the city of Gulfport, Florida, providing for the ad valorum tax levy for the fiscal year beginning on October 1, 2023 and ending September 30th, 2024, and providing for an effective date.

5:55

Section one states that a levy of 4.0258 operating mills be placed on upon the total assessed valuation of real and personal property lying within the city of Gulfport, Florida, and said monies raised by the 4.0258 mills shall be used for the general general operation of the city of Gulfport for the aforementioned fiscal period.

6:15

The adoption of the 4.0258 mills is a 13.13% increase over the rollback rate of 3.5587 mills.

6:24

All right, thank you very much.

6:26

Council will entertain a motion.

6:27

I'll make a motion on 2023 10.

6:29

Second have a first and a second.

6:31

Public comment on this item tonight.

6:36

Seeing no one council comments or questions on the second reading.

6:40

Okay.

6:41

Seeing none, we'll call the vote.

6:43

Vice Mayor Ray.

6:44

Yes.

6:45

Councilmember O'Hara?

6:46

Yes.

6:47

Councilmember Thanos?

6:48

Yes.

6:49

Councilmember Brown?

6:50

Yes.

6:50

Mayor Henderson.

6:51

Yes.

6:52

Carries to passage.

6:53

And ordinance number 2023-11.

6:56

Ordinance number 2023-11, second reading and public hearing, an ordinance of the city of Gulfport, Florida, adopting the operating budget for the fiscal year beginning October 1, 2023, and ending September 30th, 2024, and providing for an effective date.

7:10

All right, council entertain a motion.

7:13

Should we accept ordinance 2023 11?

7:16

Second.

7:21

Seeing no one council comments or questions.

7:25

Unless anybody before me has a comment.

7:44

Well, I would second that.

7:46

It does take a lot of work.

7:47

It's many, many pages.

8:02

And also that the that we not put in the budget.

8:06

I'm not necessarily opposed to in the long run necessarily hiring them, but to maybe only put one person in the budget for the um historical museum and wait, because this way, if we put it in the budget, it can happen without any discussion.

8:22

And I don't want to see that happen.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████████████████30%
Budget Equity Analysis███████████████████████████27%
Council Comments█████████████████████████25%
Personnel Matters██████████████████18%
Summary of Proceedings

Gulfport City Council Meeting: September 18, 2023 - Millage Rate and Budget Adoption

The Gulfport City Council held a regular meeting on September 18, 2023, at 6:00 PM. The council adopted the final millage rate and operating budget for FY 2023-2024, approved the consent agenda, and recognized the outgoing finance director.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the meeting minutes from September 5, 2023.
  • Resolution No. 2023-74, authorizing the City Manager to provide payment to People Ready for anticipated temporary labor needs for the Sanitation Division.

Discussion Items

  • Millage Rate Ordinance (No. 2023-10): Second reading and public hearing. The ordinance sets a levy of 4.0258 operating mills, a 13.13% increase over the rollback rate of 3.5587 mills. Council voted unanimously (5-0) to approve.
  • Budget Ordinance (No. 2023-11): Second reading and public hearing. Adopts the operating budget for FY 2023-2024. Councilmember Thanos expressed concern about including two positions for the historical museum, suggesting only one be budgeted to allow further discussion. He voted no. The motion passed 4-1 (Vice Mayor Ray, Councilmembers O'Hara, Brown, and Mayor Henderson voting yes; Councilmember Thanos voting no).
  • Farewell to Finance Director: City Manager O'Reilly announced that Finance Director Cheryl is leaving for the private sector. Councilmembers thanked her for her service, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Council Comments

  • Councilmember O'Hara thanked organizers for birthday food and the 9/11 flag raising event, and announced the South 49th Street Business and Neighborhood District meeting on the first Monday of October.
  • Councilmember Thanos reported on a Suncoast League of Cities meeting discussing combining three county planning organizations, and a climate change webinar emphasizing urgency for solar and clean energy. He also noted completing notes on the comprehensive plan.
  • Councilmember Brown promoted the Lions Club's "Get Laid" party on October 21.
  • Mayor Henderson congratulated the Tampa Bay Rays on postseason and USF football.

Key Outcomes

  • Ordinance 2023-10 (millage rate) passed unanimously.
  • Ordinance 2023-11 (budget) passed 4-1.
  • Consent agenda approved unanimously.
  • Meeting adjourned at 6:13 PM.

Meeting Transcript

To the regular City Council meeting for Gulfport, Florida for September eighteenth, twenty twenty-three. Our invocation tonight is given by Vice Mayor Paul Ray, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Thanks for the help. Well done. Vice Mayor Ray. Stephen Coban. Vice Mayor Ray. Here. Councilmember O'Hara. Here. Councilmember Thanos. Here. Councilmember Brown. Here. Mayor Henderson. Here. City Attorney Salzman. Here. City Manager O'Reilly. Here. City Clerk Carico present. All right. So again, we have the second reading of our uh two ordinances for the millagerate for 2023, 2024 fiscal year, as well as the budget itself. So we'll go ahead and begin with ordinance number 2023-10, second reading. Ordinance 2023-10, second reading and public hearing, an ordinance of the city of Gulfport, Florida, providing for the ad valorum tax levy for the fiscal year beginning on October 1, 2023 and ending September 30th, 2024, and providing for an effective date. Section one states that a levy of 4.0258 operating mills be placed on upon the total assessed valuation of real and personal property lying within the city of Gulfport, Florida, and said monies raised by the 4.0258 mills shall be used for the general general operation of the city of Gulfport for the aforementioned fiscal period. The adoption of the 4.0258 mills is a 13.13% increase over the rollback rate of 3.5587 mills. All right, thank you very much. Council will entertain a motion. I'll make a motion on 2023 10. Second have a first and a second. Public comment on this item tonight. Seeing no one council comments or questions on the second reading. Okay. Seeing none, we'll call the vote. Vice Mayor Ray. Yes. Councilmember O'Hara? Yes. Councilmember Thanos? Yes. Councilmember Brown? Yes. Mayor Henderson. Yes. Carries to passage. And ordinance number 2023-11. Ordinance number 2023-11, second reading and public hearing, an ordinance of the city of Gulfport, Florida, adopting the operating budget for the fiscal year beginning October 1, 2023, and ending September 30th, 2024, and providing for an effective date. All right, council entertain a motion.

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