Sidney City Council Holds Budget Hearing

SIDNEY--On September 24, the City of Sidney Council held its Budget Meeting for the upcoming fiscal year 2024-25. All council members were present except Brock Buckner, who was excused from the hearing. After the meeting was concluded, the council held its regular bi-weekly meeting and conducted its routine business.

In the Budget Hearing, the meeting started with time allotted for the public to make comments or raise concerns about the proposed budget. No citizens requested to make any comments, and the council then moved on to the budget presentation. Sidney City Manager David Scott first addressed the council members, starting by thanking them for finding a way “to do more with less” in the face of challenges such as inflation, supply chain disruptions, and dealing with older buildings and infrastructure, a new EMS Service, and health insurance increases in Sidney. Scott said the proposed budget is “a balanced budget”, and that it will decrease compared to the previous year. He said the total assessed value of Sidney's properties was approximately $491,000,000, down from last year’s amount of about $493,000,000. The budget proposal decreases the Mill Levy rate down to 0.499 for the 2024-25 fiscal year.

He briefly explained how the decrease in Mill Levy rates would be achieved, saying that spending has been lowered by Sidney receiving Federal and State grants, a decreased debt load, and the retirement of two bonds. He noted that a large amount of spending came from the Link 17J project, which was mandated by the state. He said that that expenditure was largely being paid for by the state’s Highway Allocation funding. He noted that sales tax revenues continue to increase, but Sidney has been hit with occasional “charge-backs” due to the Imagine Nebraska Act passed by the state legislature.

He noted that in some ways the budget may appear larger than last year’s, however, the increases have been offset by Federal and State grant money. He also noted the initial success of Sidney’s “Safe Streets” initiative, saying that a visit was paid to Sidney by representatives of the Federal Highway Commission who were very impressed by Sidney’s progress and that the city is the furthest along in the project out of any other Nebraska city, and that public input on the program has been impressive.

He also talked about ongoing and new projects coming up in the next fiscal year. A Hickory Square revitalization project and an expansion of the Industrial Park area were two highlighted upcoming projects. He also talked about the success of the projects completed over the past year, including the Elm and Forrest Street renovations, the Power Generation upgrade, and the Solar Project in Sidney. He also mentioned some upcoming challenges the city faces, such as the landfill nearing capacity, an upgrade to the wastewater discharge system, and the Lodgepole Creek Recreational Designation which will be another expense the City of Sidney must absorb. That change in designation affects 12 wastewater treatment facilities, including those in Sidney and Kimball.

City Finance Director Kegan Carwin then addressed the council and used a PowerPoint presentation to show the actual budgetary numbers and field questions from council members. Some of the highlights of his presentation included that there would be no new taxes for fees or increases in property taxes, that the actual Mill Levy decreased from 0.499925 in 2024-25, down from 2023-24’s 0.544621, and the city was projecting $1,815,000 in sales tax revenue.

Mayor Brad Sherman commented after the presentation about the importance of the city’s A+ financial rating, and all of the work required to get the city that preferred rating. That rating brings many benefits to the city, including the ability to borrow money at low interest rates. After the presentation, the council approved the budget unanimously.

The council’s regular meeting was held after the Budget Hearing, and only a few items were on the agenda. First, the council formally adopted the budget through Resolutions 20240901 and 20240902 and Ordinance No. 1865. Next, the proposed “pass-through” for the E3 Navigator position was discussed as the E3 group decided to withdraw their petition to have the Navigator position paid using a pass-through with the City of Sidney. The group has decided to use the Nebraska Communities Foundation as a pass-through for the Navigator position.

City of Sidney Solid Waste Superintendent Dean Sterling next gave an update on his search for a replacement roll-off truck and said he had found a suitable vehicle, however, it did not meet “Sourcewell” (a government-approved purchasing program) requirements, and since the vehicle was over $30,000 in price, it would have to go through the bidding process. David Scott then spoke with the council and told them that he and Mayor Sherman attended a meeting concerning LB34, to learn more information on property tax relief changes resulting from a new credit through the passage of LB 34 law. He also said that he would be attending the upcoming League of Nebraska Municipalities along with Mayor Sherman. Mayor Sherman ended the meeting by urging citizens to take the Safe Streets Survey as the grant money set aside for Sidney depends upon citizen participation. For more information on the program, go to cityofsidney.org or call (308) 254-5300.