The Austin City Council has just a few weeks left to determine how much to raise the tax levy for next year.

At a work session following Monday’s meeting, the council discussed a 3.14 percent tax levy increase as part of the proposed budget for 2013. That increase would bring the city an extra $125,000 and at Austin’s current number of property owners, would raise the annual taxes on a home valued at $105,000 by about $12.

The levy is split up among property owners, meaning if Austin continues typical growth at a rate of 2-3 percent per year, the addition could be less than $5 for that same household.

“The growth could hack at least half of that off,” said City Accountant Tom Dankert.

Even once the tax levy is set, it’s difficult to say exactly how a given property’s taxes will change, he added.

New positions could increase tax levy

Council Member Judy Enright spoke in favor of adding two city staff positions, which could increase the tax levy from 3.14 to 4.6 percent. The positions are a full-time administration role in the Park and Recreation Department currently covered through contracting, and the other is a part-time position enforcing zoning violations and removing junk and unlicensed vehicles from properties.

“At some point in time, you have to invest,” said Enright, adding that Austin won’t attract businesses if the city didn’t keep up its appearance.

While Austin keeps growing in area, it’s not picking up the number of people it needs to balance the costs of maintaining all that space. Each road brings more maintenance costs and street lights to power, she said.

“There isn’t a day that goes by that we don’t receive calls,” said City Engineer Jon Erichson.

The city receives between 600 and 800 complaints a year about junk, illegally stored vehicles and swimming pools that don’t conform to city ordinance, said Community Development Director Craig Hoium.

The council also briefly discussed the possibility of reopening public bathrooms downtown and getting another police dog to replace Ghost, who’s not expected to survive the year, according to Police Chief Brian Krueger. Ghost is having health issues and the department is preparing to retire him, according to Krueger.

Council members also discussed adding money for the city to redesign its website, in case that money did not come through on a Hormel Foundation grant.

“We have competition out there like crazy,” Enright said, alluding to the websites of nearby cities like Owatonna and Rochester. “We have to start selling Austin.”

Cuts to budget?

While the council did not mention specifics on what it could cut to curb a tax increase, it did briefly mention that it could cut funding to outside organizations. Those organizations and the funding they got in 2012 are: KSMQ, $7,000; Austin Chamber of Commerce, $6,855; the Welcome Center, $5,000; Human Rights Commission, $3,500; and the Austin Community Band, $1,000.

A rough breakdown of the city’s expenditures in 2012 found wages and benefits make up 60 percent of costs to the city’s general fund. Professional services, insurance and utilities accounted for the next largest chunk, coming in at 16 percent. Equipment repairs followed close by at 12 percent, and supplies and other items made up the rest.

The council has one more work session, on Aug. 20, to adjust and finalize the proposed budget and tax levy. Both are scheduled to be approved at the Sept. 4 City Council meeting. After Sept. 15, the city cannot raise the tax levy even if it makes changes to the budget.

The amount of Local Government Aid the city will receive in 2013 is already set at about $7.12 million, the same as it was for 2012.

“We believe that number is good for 2013,” Dankert said. If the state hits financial problems, he added, they could change that number at the next legislative session.

Mayor Tom Stiehm said there was widespread support in the state for keeping LGA where it was, but Austin has to be ready if the dollar amount drops.