Juneau Assembly passes budget that maintains flat property tax rate

After weeks of budget work by the Assembly Finance Committee, the Juneau Assembly passed the Fiscal Year 2021 budget at Monday night’s Regular Assembly Meeting. The $385.7 million budget includes cuts to CBJ positions and the Capital Improvement Plan, and does not increase the property tax rate from last year.

At the beginning of the budget process, the Finance Committee wrestled with a revenue shortfall of $34.5 million over the next 30 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Assembly was able to maintain the property tax rate for 2020 at 10.66 mills due to the State of Alaska’s community distribution of federal CARES Act funding, $53 million of which was allocated to Juneau. Of this amount, $11 million is budgeted to offset CBJ operating expenditures in the next two fiscal years. CARES Act funding will also be used to cover certain CBJ personnel costs related to COVID-19  and for community services, like funding for the new COVID-19 childcare program, rental assistance grants, business sustainability grants, and emergency shelter.

To further balance the budget, the Assembly cut $1.5 million in CBJ staff positions and $13 million from the Capital Improvement Plan, including a one-year delay of the $3.3 million Augustus Brown Pool deferred maintenance project. The final budget is balanced by a $3.1 million draw from savings. The Assembly Finance Committee anticipates continuing to work on the FY21 budget throughout the year as the fiscal health of CBJ becomes more discernible.

For more information, contact Finance Director Jeff Rogers at 586-0300 or [email protected].​

June 10th, 2020|

Finance Committee may take action on property tax rate tonight

The City and Borough of Juneau Assembly Finance Committee is close to finishing its work on the Fiscal Year 2021 budget. During its meeting at 5 p.m. today, the committee may take action on pending items, a resolution on a reduced capital improvement plan, an ordinance setting the property tax rate, and an ordinance on the general operating budget. If passed out of the finance committee today, the budget then heads to the Assembly for final authorization.

Follow along with the 5 p.m. meeting:

The Finance Committee will consider the proposed mill levy ordinance. When the Manager introduced the ordinance, it called for a 1 mill increase for a total mill levy rate of 11.66 to pay for essential services in the face of drastically reduced Sales Tax revenue. Due to federal CARES Act funding, which has stabilized the budget picture, the Manager has since revised his recommendation to consider a much reduced mill levy increase of .1 mill. The .1 increase corresponds to the FY21 cost of the Assembly’s new childcare program. The Assembly has the final authority to set the mill rate. The CARES Act will initially provide up to $17 million in FY20 and FY21, and the Finance Committee will balance tax revenues with decisions about essential services.

Also on the agenda is the Budget Pending List, which includes several items, from grants to local organizations to Marine Passenger Fee recommendations to budget reduction scenarios. See what’s already been approved and what’s still pending here.

May 27th, 2020|

Updated budget balancing tool & childcare on tonight’s Assembly Finance Committee agenda

The City and Borough of Juneau Manager will present an updated budget strategy to the Assembly during tonight’s Assembly Finance Committee meeting, which starts at 5 p.m. Also on the agenda is a COVID-19 update, COVID-19 related childcare support, Economic Stabilization Task Force Recommendations, a capital improvement project update, and the FY21 Budget pending items list. Read the full agenda packet here.

Follow along with the 5 p.m. meeting: Join the Zoom Webinar https://juneau.zoom.us/j/91513381022, watch on Facebook Live, or call 1-346-248-7799 and enter Webinar ID: 915 1338 1022.

In a memo to the Finance Committee, City Manager Rorie Watt lays out several budget assumptions and presents his revised budget strategy. CBJ faces a revenue shortfall of $34.5 million over the next 30 months. Members of the public are invited to try to balance the CBJ budget on this Excel spreadsheet. By charter, the Assembly is required to pass a budget by June 15.

Also on the agenda are recommendations for COVID-19 related childcare funding. Based on guidance from the Economic Stabilization Task Force, Deputy City Manager Mila Cosgrove is recommending the Finance Committee consider disbursing about $1 million of federal CARES Act to local childcare providers from June to December.

Also on the agenda is the Budget Pending List, which includes several items, from grants to local organizations to Marine Passenger Fee recommendations to budget reduction scenarios.

May 20th, 2020|

Finance Committee to discuss CARES funding, budget requests & reductions at 5 p.m.

With the City and Borough of Juneau facing a revenue shortfall of $34.5 million over the next 30 months, the Assembly Finance Committee resumes its work on the budget tonight, May 13, at 5 p.m. Agenda items include CARES Act funding; enterprise fund budgets; grant requests; and budget reductions. Read the full agenda here.

Follow along with the 5 p.m. meeting: Join the Zoom Webinar https://juneau.zoom.us/j/92033584393, watch on Facebook Live, or call 1-346-248-7799 and enter Webinar ID 920 3358 4393.

Here are some things the Finance Committee will be looking at tonight:

The Assembly is scheduled to pass a budget and set the property tax mil levy on June 15.

May 13th, 2020|

Comment on the proposed budget at Special Assembly Meeting April 22

The public is invited to provide feedback on the proposed budget at a Special Assembly Meeting April 22 at 5 p.m. The public can comment on the property tax mill levy rate, the City and Borough of Juneau operating budget, the Juneau School District general operating budget, and the capital improvement program. An Assembly Finance Committee meeting will immediately follow. Both meetings will be conducted completely online.

If you want to provide public comment during the Special Assembly meeting:

  • Call the Municipal Clerk’s public testimony request phone line at 586-0215 by 3 p.m. April 22

OR

  • Send an email to [email protected] by 3 p.m. April 22 and provide your full name, email address, the phone number you’ll be calling from, and the agenda topic(s) on which you wish to testify. The Clerk’s office will then contact you with instructions on connecting to the Special Assembly Meeting to provide public testimony.

Testimony time will be limited by the Mayor based on the number of participants. Members of the public are encouraged to send their comments in advance of the meeting to [email protected].

Items up for public hearing at the Special Assembly Meeting include:

  • Ordinance 2020-08: An Ordinance Establishing the Rate of Levy for Property Taxes for Calendar Year 2020 Based Upon the Proposed Budget for Fiscal Year 2021
  • Ordinance 2020-09: An Ordinance Appropriating Funds from the Treasury for FY21 City and Borough Operations
  • Ordinance 2020-10: An Ordinance Appropriating Funds from the Treasury for FY21 School District Operations
  • Resolution 2877: A Resolution Adopting the City and Borough Capital Improvement Program for Fiscal Years 2021 through 2026, and Establishing the Capital Improvement Project Priorities for Fiscal Year 2021

The public can listen to both the Special Assembly and Assembly Finance Committee meetings in a few different ways:

Read the Special Assembly Meeting agenda packet for more information on the public hearing items. Here’s the Assembly Finance Committee meeting agenda packet.

For more information, contact the City Clerk’s Office at 586-5278.

April 21st, 2020|
© 2001-2025 City and Borough of JuneauReturn to Homepage