Payson Town Council Special Meeting Approves FY 2024-25 Budget, Personnel Manual, and PSPRS Policy on July 2, 2024
Payson Town Council Special Meeting – July 2, 2024
The Payson Town Council met in special session on July 2, 2024, in the Town Hall Council Chambers at 303 N. Beeline Highway, Payson, Arizona. The agenda listed a 3:00 p.m. start; Mayor Chris Higgins called the meeting to order at approximately 3:09 p.m., and adjourned at approximately 3:28 p.m. All seven council members were present, with Council Member Brett Flaherty arriving at approximately 3:17 p.m. The meeting was a public hearing under A.R.S. § 42-17104 covering the FY 2024-25 budget and property tax levy, and also considered personnel manual amendments and a pension funding policy.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No public comments were submitted during either public hearing. For agenda items A and B, one Zoom attendee raised a hand but did not unmute when invited to speak, so no testimony was heard.
Discussion Items
- FY 2024-25 Final Budget (Resolution No. 3404): Town Manager Troy Smith presented the final budget totaling $106,058,016. He stated town revenues come 65% from Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT) and 24% from state shared revenues. The budget includes $38 million in the General Fund, $22 million in Highway User Revenue Fund (HURF), $28 million in the Water Enterprise Fund, $11.6 million in the Capital Improvement Fund, and $12 million in interfund transfers. Smith noted that an estimated 60% or more of the town's 3.88% sales tax is paid by non-residents, and more than 50% of the $38 million General Fund expenses support public safety. He also stated the town receives less than 4% of property tax collections in Gila County, or about $700,000 annually. The prior year's budget was $77 million, with an anticipated spend rate of about 60% due to conservative spending, staffing capacity limits, and the state expenditure limitation. Council Member Scott Nossek asked whether the spend rate would be similar in the coming year; Smith replied it would be, particularly for capital projects. Council Member Joel Mona commented that the budget reflects the appropriate level of service and his vision for the town's short- and long-term interests.
- FY 2024-25 Property Tax Levy (Ordinance No. 966) – First Public Hearing: Finance Director Dana Ohanesian presented the levy ordinance. The proposed levy rate is 0.2992 per $100 of assessed valuation, with no secondary property tax on Schedule B. The total levy is projected at $717,000, about $7,000 more than last year. Ohanesian noted the property tax levy rate has not increased in 18 years; the transcript indicates the rate is decreasing from 0.3094 to 0.2992. Because this was the first public hearing, no council action was taken.
- Personnel Manual Amendments (Resolution No. 3405): Human Resources Director Lynne ODonnell presented amendments to Personnel Manual Sections 3.1.11 (Hours Worked), 3.1.12 (Merit Increases), and 5.1.3 (Paid Time Off). She said the item was a follow-up to the April 2, 2024 work session and had support from the Town Council, Town Manager, the Employee Engagement Committee, and affected employees.
- PSPRS Pension Funding Policy (Council Decision Request): Finance Director Dana Ohanesian explained that the Council had approved the Public Safety Personnel Retirement System Pension Funding Policy at the June 26, 2024 meeting, but the agenda packet had mistakenly included the 2022 policy due to a clerical error. The item was brought back to reapprove with the correct documents and to authorize posting on the town's website.
Key Outcomes
- Resolution No. 3404 (Final Budget) was approved 6-1. Voting yes: Mayor Chris Higgins, Vice Mayor Barbara Underwood, Council Member Brett Flaherty, Council Member Joel Mona, Council Member Scott Nossek, and Council Member Jolynn Schinstock. Voting no: Council Member Susan "Suzy" Tubbs.
- Ordinance No. 966 (Property Tax Levy) received its first public hearing; no vote was taken at this meeting.
- Resolution No. 3405 (Personnel Manual Amendments) was approved 7-0.
- PSPRS Pension Funding Policy was approved 7-0, and the Town Clerk was authorized to post the policy on the town's website.
Meeting Transcript
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