2004 Performance Based Budget - Laserfiche WebLink

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enaction of two new State pension laws, described earlier, in 2001 will have an effect on any amount transferred from General Fund to support the Pension Funds. The 2002 Budgeted interfixnd transfers from the General Fund ($840,000 to the Police Pension Fund and $459,000 to the Fire Pension Fund), were not necessary due to the one time "catch- up" funding from the State Pension Relief Funds in 2002. These "catch-up" dollars have allowed the pension funds to accumulate available cash balances. The City estimates that due to total expenditures higher than total revenues, these cash balances will soon be expended and additional funds will again be needed The new state law that was passed in eazly 1998 has had the effect of shifting the responsibility for pension payments for certain police and firefighters from the City's pay- as-you-go pension plan to the State's 1977 Pension Plan. The pensioners that aze impacted aze those police and firefighters that have retired (or became disabled) before July 1, 1998 and have already opted to convert to the 1977 fund when the fund was established (even though the City was still financially responsible for all pension payments for those that had chosen to convert to the new plan). The City estimates that this change in pension payment responsibility will save the City approximately $1.5 million on an annual basis during the lifetime of those affected pensioners and their dependents. At this time, the City does not know how this bill will impact the state pension relief funds the City anticipates to receive in the yeazs to come. Following this Executive Summary, the reader will find the 2004 Budget Summary, along with each fund's projected armual revenue. A fund description summary precedes the 2004 Expenditure Budget by major classification as it was adopted by the City's Common Council. Following the 2004 Budget by Fund, a historical comparison of each fund's revenue and expenditures for the yeazs 2001, 2002, and 2003 along with the 2003 original (i.e., excluding additional appropriations approved during the yeaz) budget, will provide the reader with a broad view of the City's financial trends. Also included in this section is a multi-yeaz forecast of revenue and expenditures for the City's budgeted funds. This has been provided, along with an explanation of the general assumptions used, in order to give the reader a better understanding of the City's projected financial future. This section ends with a personnel summary that provides historical data on staffing levels for the past three yeazs. B-