A very good position
Town Manager Mary Jacobs expressed optimism in her report to the Oro Valley
Town Council last week. She observed: "We're in a very good position in
comparison to a lot of communities across the country."
General Fund Reserves should exceed target level at year end
General fund cash reserves are projected to be $3million more than the target level set by town council. The target level is 25% of total 2020
general fund spending.
This
estimate does not include approximately $105,000 CARE Act funds that the town
will receive from the US Treasury via Pima County.
General Fund revenues should finish the year 3% under budget
Total general fund revenues are projected to be 3% ($1.2 million) under the adopted budget for the fiscal
year. Included in this estimate are:
- Sales tax revenues will be 6% under budget for the year. Sales tax revenues were 10% ahead of budget through February.
- State share revenues are projected to be 5% over budget. This will somewhat mitigate the loss in sales tax revenue.
- Licensing and permit fees are projected to be 21% under budget.
Good positioning for town operations
In a LOVE follow up interview with Jacobs, we learned that no town
employee has been diagnosed with Covid-19. In addition, the crisis has challenged the town to change the
way some things happen, accelerating changes that were "in the works" and
likely to stay. For example:
- The town announced new processes for public meetings
- The town launch an updated website
- The majority of town employees telework
- Permitting is done online
- Some inspections are done remotely
- Jacobs hosts "e-Town halls" for town employees to augment email communications, letting staff know what's going on and what the future may hold.
Still, she notes that there is no long term substitute for personal contact. "I really miss the opportunity for that personal interaction. We get a lot of energy from each other."
It's not a good idea to bet against Oro Valley
As Yogi Berra once said: "The future ain't what it used to be." Yogi was right. Times are different. Not necessarily better or worse. Just different. We've never been in this place in our lifetime.
Wednesday, we will take a look at the future as we give a "quick peek" into the 2021 budget. See just how different things might be.
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