Commentary, Park Forest

Village Staff Introduces FY 2016-2017 Annual Park Forest Budget To The Sound Of Crickets


Commentary

Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- Village staff Monday introduced the fiscal year 2016-2017 budget to a board that asked no questions.

It was odd. A lengthy presentation by Director of Finance Mary Dankowski and Village Manager Tom Mick followed by … crickets.

Not one question or observation.

Except for Mayor John Ostenburg.

Mayor Ostenburg made some welcome comments on the nature of reserve funding, something, he said, even some people in Springfield don’t understand.

I had a question which I directed to Director Dankowski after the meeting. In short, it appeared as if the budget reserves were going to be awful low throughout the next fiscal year. Ms. Dankowski agreed, but the reserves would still be slightly in excess of $6 million, a 3.2 month reserve, she said, about $400,000 to the north of what is desired for healthy, conservative budgeting.

So what is that money for? As Ostenburg correctly pointed out, it’s not a budget surplus. The village accumulates funds for those times when other governmental entities that owe money to Park Forest do not pay in a timely fashion.

Like the state of Illinois.

Like Cook County.

To name two.

With money set aside in reserve, the village can continue to operate until funds owed the village make their way to the village.

So the village doesn’t have to borrow for operations, like some other municipalities have been forced to do.

Because of poor budgeting.

Ostenburg said money is also set aside in the Vehicle Fund. The village saves money, each department contributes to this fund, so that when vehicles need to  be purchased, like a fire engine or an ambulance or a squad car, then money is on-hand. The village then does not have to incur debt to make such purchases.

The mayor also emphasized that the budget is a spending plan, stressing that there are misconceptions as to what a budget really is. Six months after passage, the board and staff hold a budget review session that typically lasts most of a Saturday morning and a bit of Saturday afternoon.

Why the review?

Priorities, necessities, may change. A budget is not carved in stone. A major weather event can change priorities, demand that resources be refocused, for example.

The proposed FY 2016-2017 Park Forest Budget is over 500 pages long.

Would that the state of Illinois put even a fraction of that effort into the state’s budget.

Which simply does not exist.

The only thing we hear from Springfield?

Crickets.


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