City Makes Cuts, While Some Revenue Declines

Funding for Huntington police and fire departments would be cut by 2 percent in the projected budget for fiscal year 2016. This cut will result in a loss of  $150,000 for each department.

The budget, recently released by Huntington Mayor Steve Williams, also includes a significant cut in funding for the Public Works: Streets and Highways section. The section is set to lose $123,666 in FY2016. This amount is an 8.7 percent change from the 2015 amended budget, and information has not yet been released about the specific areas or projects this cut will affect. It is likely that paving will take a hit, which may be a point of concern for Huntington residents.

The landfill closure fund, another public works section, would experience a cut in the projected FY2016 budget. The $1.5 million allocation for the landfill fund in the FY2015 amended budget would be completely drained in FY2016. A representative for the mayor was contacted about this issue but has not responded to the request.

The insurance program for self-insured is projected to take a significant hit in FY2016 to the tune of $407,706.

While the Business and Occupation tax still makes up the largest part of the city’s revenue, it is projected to experience a 4 percent decrease in FY2016.  According to the City of Huntington website, this tax is paid by “any business that is engaged in or caused to be engaged in activities with the object of gain of economic benefit.” The mayor has not disclosed the specific cause for the decrease.

Revenue from city sales tax is also experiencing a decline from the 2014 budget to the FY2016 proposed budget. In an interview, Mayor Williams mentioned a large company in the area not wanting to pay sales tax, which could be a large contributor to the decline.

The FY2015 amended budget was created after a long-term analysis of the budget in fiscal year 2014. The city administration is discussing and analyzing the proposed fiscal year 2016 budget at this time.