During a meeting on June 20, the Camp Verde Town Council approved its tentative budget for Fiscal Year 2018-19 in a 5-1 vote. Councilwoman Jackie Baker represented the “no” vote.
The approved budget, which is set for $27,450,675, represents an 8 percent increase of the FY 2017-18 budget.
Much of the extra spending comes from the construction of the Camp Verde Sports Complex, which added an additional $6.7 million, as well as $4 million for wastewater projects. In addition, the budget includes $1.6 million in debt payments, partially to cover the large projects that the town has undergone in recent years.
Town of Camp Verde Finance Director Mike Showers requested that the council approve an additional $1.5 million in expenses in case the Town of Camp Verde buys the water company in 2019 — a decision it has been considering. That money would not be spent from the general fund, but rather from the costs of running the water utility as it currently does. These costs will need to be approved by the council in advance.
Under the budget rules, the budgeting to pay water costs later on need to be included in the year’s budget, whereas the revenues from the water fees do not. If the Town of Camp Verde does not purchase the water company, the budgeted funds will not be spent.
“The purchase of the water company has zero affect on any general government funds,” Town Manager Russ Martin said.
Martin said he feels that the goal of buying the water company is part of the town’s mission of become a “full service community” that provides for all the basic needs of its residents.
Approval of the budget was met with complaints from some residents who expressed concern that the town is spending money beyond its means.
“Citizens are concerned about this particular budget,” said Camp Verde Town Council candidate Carol German during the June 20 meeting.
German noted the debt to assets ratio, which she said is 52 percent — an increase compared to previous years.
“The town needs to look carefully before we raise the debt service any more,” German said.
Camp Verde resident Cheri Wischmeyer also spoke out against increasing debt.
“If we were trying to buy a house, we wouldn’t qualify for a home loan,” Wischmeyer said. “We continue to spend money on the backs of our citizens who just don’t have it.”
Showers pushed back on claims of fiscal issues, and said that the expenses for the park and wastewater had already been allocated into the budget and paid for, allowing the budget to stay reasonable in upcoming years.
Showers also noted that the town received a strong rating on its credit worthiness from Standards & Poor’s Financial Services.
“Tell your parents you got an A minus and tell me that any parent in the country wouldn’t go, ‘… Good job, son,’” Martin said. “It is something that this town should be proud of.”
Martin also noted that, although the total debt to assets ratio was 58 percent, the more relevant number is the town’s income to debt-servicing ratio, which is 9 percent.
“We’ve got a long way to go before we’re anywhere close to over leveraged in this town, which is why we’ve got an excellent A minus rating,” Martin said.
“We just haven’t had any assets for a town that’s 30 years old,” he said. “Now we’re building some assets, and believe it or not, to do so, we’ve had to take out some debt to get there.”
Jon Hecht can be reached at 634-8551, or email jhecht@larsonnewspapers.com
