SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio council members are weighing an unwelcome choice: raise taxes for the first time in 34 years to help close a budget gap or find the money elsewhere, likely through even deeper cuts than they’re already considering.
But depending on how Thursday’s series of budget votes go, the city council could end up passing the budget ax to the city manager to do its dirty work.
The city’s plans to close a projected $158 million deficit over the next two years involve a mix of cuts, shifting around funds, raising fees, and a pair of 3.9% and 4.4% tax increases.
The first increase is the only one up for the council’s consideration right now, and would cost the average homeowner about $49 more on their tax bill than if the rate were to remain flat.
City staff has said avoiding both tax hikes would require an additional $75 million in cuts over the next two years, on top of the $90 million worth of reductions and fund transfers already planned in that time.
It’s not guaranteed what would actually end up on the chopping block in that case, but the possibilities staff have presented before would cut most into parks and library funding.
Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones and council are considering other options, too, such as raising additional revenue through higher fees or dipping into other pots of money to free up cash in the city’s general fund.
The mayor in particular has promoted the latter strategy and wove it into a list of 29 proposed budget changes. Her focus has been on the Ready to Work job-training program, the Hotel Occupancy Tax (HOT) fund, and special tax capture districts known as “TIRZ.”
All together, though, the mayor’s and other non-cut amendments compiled in a Sept. 11 memo totaled about $20 million to $21 million over two years, meaning cuts would likely still be necessary to truly avoid a tax increase.
Some council members are also looking to avoid planned cuts, like 39 library positions, or add even more spending, such as more police officers.
But City Manager Erik Walsh said the city charter requires a balanced budget by Sept. 27.
If the council passes a budget in one vote on Thursday without a high enough tax rate in another, Walsh said it would fall on him to find ways to cut spending to keep the budget balanced.
Raising the tax rate would require seven votes out of the 11-member council.
Three members — Marina Alderete Gavito (D7), Misty Spears (D9), and Marc Whyte (D10) — have been vocal opponents of raising the tax rate.
The city council will meet on Wednesday to further discuss possible budget tweaks ahead of Thursday’s vote.
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