# Urban County Council Meeting - Mayor's Budget Address - April 9, 2013 > Auto-transcribed civic record · April 9, 2013 - **Permalink**: https://meetings.lexingtonky.news/meeting/2942 - **Source video**: https://lfucg.granicus.com/player/clip/2942?view_id=14&redirect=true - **Date**: 2013-04-09 - **Last revised**: July 16, 2026 - **Length**: 2,333 words > ⚠️ **Auto-generated content.** Audio from the official Granicus video was auto-transcribed with OpenAI's open-source Whisper large-v3-turbo model, run locally by The Lexington Times. Structured facts were extracted with GPT-4o; the narrative summary was written by Anthropic Claude. Verbatim wording may contain errors. See [methodology](https://meetings.lexingtonky.news/about/methodology) or [report a correction](mailto:editor@lexingtonky.news). --- ## Meeting Overview The Urban County Council met on April 9, 2013, at 3:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers located at 200 E. Main St, Lexington, KY 40507. Mayor Jim Gray presided over the meeting. The council convened for one agenda item: the Mayor's Budget Address, which was presented for informational purposes. No votes were taken during this meeting, and no public comments were heard. ## Attendance The following individuals were present at the meeting on April 9, 2013: * Lawless * Mossotti * Myers * Scutchfield * Stinnett * Akers * Beard * Clarke * Ellinger * Farmer * Ford * Gorton * Henson * Kay * Lane No absences or late arrivals were recorded. ## Budget and Financial Actions The meeting included appropriations for several major capital and operational projects: **Infrastructure and Community Facilities** * Purchase and design of a new senior citizens center: $5,000,000 * Critical structural repairs to the historic courthouse: $300,000 * Maintenance of greenways in neighborhoods: $117,000 * Local matching funds for Rupp District development: $1,250,000 **Cultural and Preservation Initiatives** * Matching funds for private fundraising to update the Kentucky Theatre: $250,000 (to be provided to Friends of the Kentucky Theatre) * Rural land preservation to protect Bluegrass brand, agriculture, and horse industry: $1,000,000 **Social Services** * Funding for social service partner agencies: $460,000 **Planning** * Small area plans for two neighborhoods (amount not specified) **Other Financial Actions** * Streetlight funding via 1% franchise fee increase (amount not specified) The appropriations totaled $8,377,000 in specified amounts, representing investments across infrastructure, cultural preservation, social services, and community development initiatives. ## Mayor's Budget Address Mayor Jim Gray presented the FY 2013 Budget Address, titled "Business-like Budget, Release 3.0," to the council [timestamp: 00:00]. **Key Presentation Points** The Mayor highlighted $25 million in savings achieved through health insurance, pension, and union contract reforms. The budget emphasized three core priorities: financial stability, disciplined spending, and strategic investments in public safety, quality of life, and government efficiency. **Franchise Fee Request** Mayor Gray requested council approval for a 1% franchise fee increase to sustain streetlight funding. **Outcome** The presentation was informational in nature, with no formal vote or debate recorded in the available materials. --- ## Full transcript Urban County Council and the Mayor. It is my distinct pleasure to introduce our Mayor, who's been hard at work. I do notice this year, Mayor, that we have no charts. So that's good, isn't it? We don't need charts this year. So without any other further ado, I give you our Honorable Mayor, Jim Gray. Thank you, Vice Mayor, and welcome everyone. Well, today, April 9, 2013, springtime, finally, and we are here to talk about our budget. In 2011, I called our city budget a businessman's budget, a business-like budget, and same for 2012. So let's just call this Business-Like Budget Release 3.0. The name fits because our budgets make sense to business and to Lexington taxpayers. Spending under control, limited bonding. Our goal is to get our debt service under 10% of revenue by 2016, and addressing the toughest financial issues. And generally, our budgets are based on common-sense investments that support our efforts to create jobs. Let's first talk about where we were. When I was first elected, when many of our council members also came on board, here's what we faced. Employee health insurance costs $10 million over budget and increasing exponentially. Collected bargaining contracts the city couldn't afford. And pension costs, millions beyond what we could afford, pushing us on a Titanic-like course to the brink. Today, those problems are in our past. So the budget headline today is simply this. Lexington is now on solid ground. because of $25 million in savings from the reforms we've made in the last two years. Budget 3.0, just like our first two budgets, is based on our priorities and strong financial management. So what are those priorities? Our top three goals, part of every budget, create jobs, run government efficiently, and build a great American city. And what is the role of strong financial management in this, our third budget? It is the core value, accountability for every dollar spent and invested. And this year, we expect to invest about $297 million from the General Fund, a 2.7% increase over last year. Now, bringing strong financial management to City Hall, as all of you know, has not been easy or casual. It's meant a lot of tough decisions for the Council, like the decision to reform employee health insurance. We've now experienced a full year of employee health insurance reform, including 12 months of operating our employee and retiree clinic and pharmacy. We estimate annual savings at $10 million and growing. That $10 million includes a savings of $1 million at the health clinic and pharmacy. Also, the decision to search for savings in union contracts, an average annual savings of $3 million. And most recently, just last month, pension reform. You know, someone forgot to tell Lexington that pension reform couldn't be done. We worked together, unions, retirees, the city, our council, state, and we did it. We solved our biggest financial problem by cutting our long-range liability almost in half, from nearly $300 million to $161 million. And starting with this budget, we are saving $12 million a year from pension reform. That includes $9 million in lower annual payments and $3 million more in annual savings because we will not, now let me repeat that, will not take on more debt by issuing the $34 million pension obligation bond, and we now expect our savings will grow each year. A conservative estimate of savings from all of these difficult, tough, challenging, but essential decisions adds up to $25 million this year alone. Let's ask ourselves this question. Without the savings in health insurance, pensions, or union contracts, where would we be? deeper in debt, or threatened with insolvency like Stockton, California, or Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, or making the massive public safety layoffs Cincinnati is considering, 149 police officers and 80 firefighters. Now, in this budget, let's don't expect $25 million in savings to produce a ginormous windfall in available resources. Why not? Because we never really could afford to pay those bills anyway. Not without borrowing more or cutting more programs, year after year. Now let me say that again. We couldn't afford to pay those bills anyway. Now several times I've suggested that Lexington's finances are back on track. But I've also said we're not out of the woods yet. and this new budget reflects that condition. Revenues are growing again, but modestly. We are estimating about 2.7 percent revenue growth in the general fund this year, but costs are growing as well. And as we slowly emerge from the recession, there are many pent-up needs. Our finance commissioner and former revenue director, Bill O'Mara, often refers to himself with a smile, of course, as Dr. No. And that translates into appropriately conservative. In developing this budget, Bill's crystal ball was always operating like a blinking yellow light. Caution. Be careful. Danger, Will Robinson. Danger, danger. Last Friday's monthly U.S. employment report confirmed Bill's caution. We are not out of the woods yet. And while I'm talking about Bill, I'd just like to thank the team that put this budget together, Bill and three folks who are new to their positions, although you couldn't tell it by looking at this budget. Sally Hamilton, our Chief Administrative Officer, Melissa Luker, Acting Budget Director, and Glenn Brown, our Deputy Chief Administrative Officer. So let's dive into Budget 3.0. First, we made disciplined savings and spending a priority, as in our first two budgets. We examined all funding requests for needs and efficiency. There were $309.7 million in funding requests, but we couldn't fund all of them. We made decisions only after listening to council members and discussing issues with division directors, union representatives, commissioners, and others. As Glenn Brown just said yesterday, Jim, be sure to say we want to thank the directors and commissioners and others, council members throughout government, who are great to work with. As a result, this budget includes limited, modest bonding to invest in our infrastructure, $15.7 million, and no pension bond. This budget includes continued full funding of the Rainy Day Fund, a 2 percent salary increase for civil service employees, required staffing to improve efficiency and support results-driven effective management, and finally this budget includes no broad-based tax increases. increases. Now, we have included the same 1 percent addition to the franchise fee proposed as part of last year's budget to allow us to continue to pay for streetlights in our neighborhoods and along major thoroughfares. The alternative is cutting streetlights and other services. Bill O'Mara and Susan Bush can offer more detail, but I will offer some In brief context, it wasn't necessary to implement the franchise fee last year. Why? Because we succeeded in covering our streetlight expenses with savings from fiscal 2012. But demands have increased, and this revenue will be essential moving forward. Before we factored the increase into this budget, we worked to put the budget together without it. It didn't work. Without the additional revenue, the cuts across government were too deep at a time when we must continue basic services as well as invest in our community, our neighborhoods, and our people. So we are now ready to move ahead, and we'll be asking Council to take a first step on today's work session docket so that the revenue is in place beginning July 1st. In talking about budgets, it was a U.S. Vice President who once said, Don't tell me what you value, show me your budget, and I'll tell you what you value. So I'll just confirm what many Council members, and I as well, value by talking about budget proposals the Council has already made, including funding for 35 new firefighters, 28 funded initially through the SAFER grant and the addition of another emergency medical ambulance, funding for the Homelessness Office, a goal identified by the Mayor's Commission on Homelessness. We have all recognized the need for a new Senior Citizens Center. This budget includes $5 million to purchase land and design a new senior citizens center. This budget includes increased funding, a total of $460,000, for social service partner agencies, holding out a helping hand to citizens in danger of falling through the safety net. Yes, this is a business-like budget with a dose of Warren Buffett in it, that is, making good investments, and a dose of the Good Samaritan in it as well, taking care of our neighbors, treating others the way we'd like to be treated. State budget cuts and the federal budget have resulted in significant cuts in local grants. Funding for GED training, child care assistance, and assistance for teenage moms has dried up. Now, we all know that local government won't be able to fill this gap over the long term. But my sense is that we all agree that additional funding is appropriate in this crisis. Council members have also voiced their support of youth activities, so we have included new support for the I Do initiative. In the East End, increased funding for the Lyric. And I support Council's call for new multi-use fields to accommodate soccer, football, field hockey, lacrosse, and more. Like the investments in Council priorities, I propose focused initiatives designed to enhance quality of life and place, increase public safety, and improve operational efficiency. Under improvements in quality of life, let's expand camps for children with mental and physical disabilities and support new summer and sports activities. In terms of quality of place, let's make maintenance a priority to ensure our city always looks its best, better maintain downtown our front door. Our downtown belongs to everyone and every neighborhood. It distinguishes us competitively. And we've included $117,000 to improve maintenance of our greenways in neighborhoods. I've also included investing $300,000 in the historic courthouse to make critical structural repairs while we plan for its future. and $250,000 to match the significant private fundraising to update the Kentucky Theater. We've invited Vice Mayor Isabel Yates here today to thank her and the friends of the Kentucky Theater for raising $250,000 plus and counting for the Kentucky. Thank you. And she's got plenty of stickers to pass around. Thank you, Isabel. Thank you, ma'am. Part of this also includes investing in quality of place. It means good planning. I'm proposing we fund two small area plans for neighborhoods through this budget, and, as announced last year, include $1.25 million required local funding match to leverage the state's contribution of $2.5 million for the Rupp District. Currently, we are putting together a financial plan for the Rupp District and expect it will be complete this summer. Going forward, funds will be used to begin the design of both Rupp Arena and the Convention Center. And through this budget, we will invest $1 million in rural land preservation to protect and enhance our bluegrass brand, agriculture and the horse industry, whose international capital we proudly claim. While I'm talking about our farmland, And I'd just like to share that we are raising private funds to implement the outstanding design for Town Branch Commons, the project that will connect our urban core to the rural landscape. Now, to improve public safety, we will, with your approval, increase strategic police overtime for neighborhoods where even the threat of crime must be vigorously addressed. And we will upgrade emergency warning sirens. We will continue to prepare a new, more affordable emergency operations center. We will improve public safety by improving their equipment. Police cruisers, fire trucks, emergency medical ambulances, radios, clothing, cardiac monitors, and more. and we will find the position of medical director to ensure best practices for our emergency medical technicians. And through this budget, we will improve government efficiency. We will hire a select few corrections officers to expedite the intake process so officers can get back to their beats in our neighborhoods and purchase equipment for building inspectors to enable them to work much more efficiently from the field where they are needed. We will also improve efficiency by focusing on innovation through technology, engaging partners like the Knight Foundation through the CitizenLex project, which looks to citizens for solutions and code for America, which leverages the intellect of some of the country's best young technology programmers to use our open data initiative to amplify innovation in local government. Also improving efficiency, we will reorganize within the Department of Planning under Commissioner Paulson to streamline permitting in a one-stop shop, make enforcement divisions more efficient, implement downtown design guidelines, and introduce comprehensive focus on neighborhoods, from land use to design to construction to maintenance to preservation. And also with an aim to improving efficiency, we will add a chief information officer, a commissioner-level position, to lead our information technology initiatives strategically and operationally with a focus on transparency and innovation. Through technology, we will improve efficiency by making street closure information available to motorists as it develops and better coordinate street work with utilities so pavement isn't torn up unnecessarily. Looking all the way back to 2011, to our first, second, and now our third budget, we are staying true to our values and our goals. We've created jobs and encouraged the environment that attracts good jobs, but we know we can do better. We've run government efficiently, but we know we can do better. We have kept building and improving a great American city, but we know we can do better. Yes, we know we can always do better, And with your guidance and direction, we will. Thank you all very, very much for joining us today. Thank you. Thank you, ma'am. Thank you, Vice Mayor. Thank you all. Thank you all. Thanks. Thanks very much. I recognize that was about half as long as last year, so that must have been a generous applause. Yes, ma'am. So thank you all for being here. The council now will go into session after a recess, perhaps, Vice Mayor, of five minutes. All right. All right. Thank you all very much.