26:55All right, everybody.
26:56It is momentarily five thirty on September fifteenth, twenty twenty five.
27:03This is a special city commission meeting regarding the budget second hearing, and I am going to call on the city owner and clerk for an invocation.
27:20Heavenly Father, we affirm our faith in thee.
27:22We seek your divine strength, wisdom, and guidance in the deliberations that affect the lives of each of the citizens of our community.
27:28In our name we pray, amen.
27:51And are there any changes to the order of the day for tonight's meeting, Miss Briggs?
27:58Um do we have an approval of the proposed agenda schedule?
28:03All right, Commissioner Batti moved approval of proposed agenda schedule.
28:08Uh Commissioner Ulrich seconded.
28:10If you'll vote, Commissioners.
28:16Motion passes unanimously.
28:19Um, I ask the clerk to read the Pledge of Public Conduct.
28:24We may disagree, but we will be respectful to one another.
28:27We will direct all comments to issues we will not engage in personal attacks.
28:32Um and only public hearings tonight are on the budget.
28:40Mayor, just so let's make the announcement there was no regular public comment first.
28:44So I just wanted to yes.
28:45Yeah, there's nobody here for the regular public comment.
28:49Um, but we do have one person signed up to speak, so I figured before we even got into the uh public hearings on the budget, why don't we go ahead and you know he's speaking on item eleven one.
29:03And I think at the let's also go ahead and do the oath first, and then let's go into the all right.
29:09Anyone who plans to speak at any public hearing held tonight, please stand.
29:14Or possibility to speak, please stand a note.
30:18You know, and and again, since we're just getting this, you know, I assume you you know we are not going to be able to look at this and read it.
30:25I know, I'll tell you what's in it.
30:30So it will be easy to follow.
30:32Um thank you, Madam Mayor, um, and commissioners.
30:35Well, um, I guess I should say here we go again.
30:39It's the same complaint about the budget that I had exactly a year ago when I shared with you a then recent um guest editorial I had written um for the um Sarasota Herald Tribune complaining about the fact that you don't do performance budgeting.
31:01Bottom line is you don't put performance measures in the budget that you're about to adopt.
31:06Um as you I've got several items in the handout, each page is numbered, and I'll quickly go through and tell you what it is.
31:14Page one is from your the budget that presumably you're voting on to approve.
31:20It says on um page 63, my first page.
31:25Service level budgeting, the current service level continuation budget reflects all costs necessary to maintain city services at the same level as approved in the prior year, except you don't get to see any of those measures in this budget.
31:43So it says it's a service level budget.
31:47Second page, uh, my second page, page 65 of the current proposed budget before you.
32:48Um, for example, in my city it was if a street light was out and reported, it would be repaired within three days, 90 percent of the time.
32:57That's a measure, whether you use that or three weeks or three months, whatever, that's a measure.
33:02You don't have that before you.
33:04Now let's look at last, well, the current actually the current year budget, the page four.
33:10This is the what's labeled the adopted budget.
33:14If you look at the bottom, it does have performance measures for this program.
33:19Um, but that those measures were inserted by the staff after you approve the funding levels.
33:27In other words, you had no idea what level of service you are supposed to get for the money that you spend.
33:35Um cities don't operate that way.
33:38Their budget show the city council, city commission, the performance measures that they're being asked to pay for.
33:46This was the adopted budget.
33:48It's not actually the one you approved.
33:51The last page is from from the current year.
33:54This is what you voted on.
33:56The proposed budget for 2025.
33:58Again, you'll see no performance measures.
34:01What Sarah does, Sarasota does, it has a full range of performance measures.
34:06Um frankly, they're pretty poor for street lighting.
34:10It's just how many street lights.
34:12Um it should be unit cost of street lights.
34:15You could compare that over years to see if it's going up faster than inflation.
34:19That's an efficiency measure.
34:21Um that's what some cities do.
34:23Certainly response time.
34:25How quickly there, whenever it's reported, a street light is out, how quickly it's responded to.
34:31Um, and also what percentage of lights work in our city.
34:35We it was a survey night we send out several times a year to survey neighborhoods of the street lighting and what percentage and is it 98 percent your target or um 90 percent or 88 percent?
34:49Not just how many street lights.
34:51That tells you really nothing.
34:53So you've got in this program poor measures.
34:57Now, there are some excellent measures uh elsewhere in your budget.
35:01So I'm not generalizing about that problem.
35:04What I am generalizing about the problem is you don't know what you are voting on in the way of results.
35:11You are told that you are voting on hiring this new person or buying this piece of equipment.
35:16What impact should that have on the service levels?
35:20Your budget doesn't tell you that.
35:22What will happen is after the close of the of this year, the staff will add it, and then they'll send that budget, not the one you are voting on, with no measures, but they'll send that one to GFOA to get the award for having outstanding budget presentations, which is required to have performance measures, which you don't have.
35:47I am going to call upon or open the public hearing on the items uh 21 through 26, and we'll combine those in one hearing, but we'll do uh separate motions.
36:01So I'm gonna open the public hearing on the budget resolutions number 25R 3339 through 25R 3344, and call upon the city auditor and clerk to read the titles.
36:17Um everybody just bear with me here.
36:20Resolution number 25R 3339, a resolution of the City Commission of the City of Sarasota, Florida, certifying to the property appraiser and tax collector of Sarasota County the rates of millage to be levied by the City of Sarasota for the fiscal year beginning October 1, 2025, establishing the City of Sarasota's General Fund operating millage at 3.2730, which contributes to an aggregate millage rate for the City of Sarasota that is 12.95 percent higher than the aggregate rollback millage rate of 2.9573, establishing the City of Sarasota's debt service millage at 0.1348, providing for the reading of this resolution by title only and providing for an effective date.
37:00Resolution number 25R 3340, a resolution of the City Commission of the City of Sarasota, Florida, approving a budget and making appropriations of sums of money for all expenditures of the City of Sarasota for fiscal year beginning on October 1, 2025 and ending on September 30, 2026.
37:18Prescribing the terms, conditions, and provisions with respect to the items of appropriation in their payment, providing for supplemental appropriations and reappropriations, providing for the severability of the parts hereof if declared invalid, providing for reading by title only, and providing an effective date.
37:33Resolution number 25 R 3341, a resolution of the City Commission of the City of Sarasota, Florida, certifying to the property appraiser and tax collector of Sarasota County, the rates of millage to be levied by the City of Sarasota within the Golden Gate Point Street Skate Special District for the fiscal year beginning October 1, 2025, establishing the Golden Gate Point Street Skate Special Districts, operating millage at 0.6148, which contributes to an aggregate millage rate for the City of Sarasota that is 12.95 percent higher than the aggregate rollback millage rate of 2.9573, establishing the Golden Gate Point Street Scape Special District's debt service millage at 0.5899, providing for the reading of this resolution by title only and providing for an effective date.
38:19Resolution number 25R 3342, a resolution of the City Commission of the City of Sarasota, Florida, approving a budget and making appropriations of sums of money for all expenditures of the Golden Gate Point Street Skate Special District for the fiscal year beginning on October 1, 2025, and ending on September 30, 2026, prescribing the terms, conditions, and provisions with respect to items of appropriation in their payment, providing for a supplemental appropriations and reappropriations, providing for the severability of the parts hereof is declared invalid, providing for reading by title only and provide an effective date.
38:52Resolution number 25 R 3343, a resolution of the City Commission of the City of Sarasota, Florida, certifying to the property appraiser and a tax collector of Sarasota County, the rates of millage to be levied by the City of Sarasota within a downtown improvement district for the fiscal year beginning October 1, 2025, establishing the downtown improvement district operating millage at 2.000, which contributes to an aggregate millage rate for the City of Sarasota that is 12.95 percent higher than the aggregate rollback millage rate at of 2.9573, providing for a reading of this resolution by title only and providing an effective date.
39:31Resolution number 25R 3344, a resolution of the City Commission of the City of Sarasota, Florida, approving a budget and making appropriations of sums of money for all expenditures of the downtown improvement district for the fiscal year beginning on October 1, 2025 and ending on September 30, 2026, prescribing terms, conditions, and provisions with respect to the items of appropriation in their payment, providing for supplemental appropriation and reappropriations, providing for the several of the parts hereof if declared invalid, providing for reading by title only and providing an effective date.
40:00Providing for the server of the parts through rope is declared invalid, providing for reading by title only and providing an effective date.
40:06All right, thank you very much.
40:08All right, I'm going to call upon our financial administration director, Strickland, to make a presentation.
40:15My name is Kelly Strickland.
40:16I'm the director of financial administration.
40:18And with me I have Tyler Harris, who is our budget manager.
40:26Once again, we're at the second public hearing for the budget.
40:37We're gonna get there.
40:40This is the second public hearing for the budget for adopting for fiscal year 2026.
40:47Tonight we have six resolutions that we are asking the city commission to vote on separately.
40:55There is the city of Sarasota, which is the city budget.
40:59Um first you will be asked to vote on the millage, then the budget.
41:04The next will be Golden Gate, which will be first the millage and then the budget, and then the downtown improvement district, which is the millage, and then the budget.
41:15This slide that you see before you is the comparison from the the current millage and the proposed millage for fiscal year 26.
41:26We have um a millage of 3.2730 for the city operating millage.
41:33The debt service millage is point one three four eight.
41:38Yes, one three four eight.
41:41For the Golden Gate streetscape, the operating millage did not change.
41:45It's point six one four eight.
41:48The debt service for the Golden Gate is.
41:54In the downtown improvement district is two mils.
42:00The total proposed budget city budget is three hundred and three million five hundred and seventy-five thousand, which is a two point one million dollar decrease from the previous year.
42:14And as I stated before, this is the second final public hearing.
42:19We had the first public hearing on September third.
42:22And uh this is the last chance of for the adoption of the budget for fiscal year twenty-six.
42:33Questions, commissioners.
42:39I don't think oh, Commissioner Ahern Coch.
42:43I'll save it for another time, I think.
42:45Um I think we don't have any questions.
42:50You know, we've gone over this a few times.
42:52So um I will close the public hearing and ask for a motion regarding resolution number 25R 3339.
43:03Move approval of resolution number 25 R-3339.
43:07All right, Commissioner Ahern Koch moved approval of resolution number 25 R 3339.
43:13Commissioner Alrich seconded.
43:16If you'll vote, Commissioners.
43:17And also roll call, Aaron Kutch.
43:24Is that your vote, Commissioners?
43:26Motion passes unanimously.
43:28We need a motion for resolution number 25 R 3340.
43:34Approval of resolution number 25 R-3340.
43:42Hern Coch moved approval for resolution number 25R 3340.
43:48Commissioner Batti seconded.
43:50Um, if you will vote, Commissioner.
43:52Madam Mayor, I just would like to speak very quickly to this.
43:55Oh, go ahead, please.
43:56Um, I uh I want to thank the staff for all the work that they did.
44:02Um I I'm very interested in the public comment that was given about you know the measure measurables and um hopefully we can have uh deeper discussion on that sometime in the future.
44:21If you will vote, Commissioners.
44:22Okay, also roll call.
44:29Uh Commissioner Batti, if you press your button, thank you.
44:33Is that your vote, Commissioners?
44:35Motion passes unanimously.
44:38Um now I need a motion on resolution number 25R 3341.
44:44Move approval of resolution number 25R-3341.
44:51Um Commissioner Ahern Coch moved approval of resolution number 25 R 3341.
44:57Commissioner Batties seconded, if you'll vote, Commissioners.
45:08Commissioner Batti again.
45:10Is that your vote, Commissioners?
45:19Um I need a motion regarding resolution number 25R 3342.
45:25Move approval of resolution number 25R-3342.
45:30Commissioner Ahern Koch moved approval of 25R-3342.
45:37Um Commissioner Batti seconded.
45:40Um if you'll vote, Commissioners.
45:54Um need a motion on resolution number 25R 3343.
46:00Move approval of resolution number 25R-3343.
46:04Um Commissioner Ahern Koch moved approval of resolution number 25R 3343.
46:10And all of these are on second reading.
46:12Um Commissioner Ulrich seconded.
46:14If you'll vote, Commissioners.
46:27I caught up in worrying about that.
46:29I forgot to do roll call.
46:31Let me do that for that.
46:38And finally we have resolution number 25R 3344.
46:43Move approval of resolution number 25R-3344.
46:50Commissioner Ahern Koch moved approval of resolution number 25R 3344 on second reading.
46:56Commissioner Batti seconded.
46:58If you will vote, Commissioners.
47:05Got your vote, Commissioners?
47:11Does anybody have any other matters?
47:16Seeing none, we're adjourned.
