by Nicole Bradford
Pearland city leaders said fixing streets, retaining employees, and maintaining city services are priorities for fiscal year 2025 during a recent discussion on the upcoming budget.
A workshop on a draft version of the budget is set for 3 pm on Monday, Aug. 12. The budgeting process includes prioritizing a list of needs from each department, including personnel.
“There are staffing pressure across the board; you’ll see the biggest portion of that in the public safety arena,” City Manager Trent Epperson noted.
Despite a projected increase in utility rates, city leaders are hopeful regarding property tax rates — which are not expected to increase. This can be attributed partly to how both revenues and spending are projected.
“When we go through a tax rate analysis — especially for a bond program, we future forecast very conservatively on assessment valuation growth,” Mayor Kevin Cole said.
The city also sold less debt than predicted for bond projects as those are designed and built, according to staff.
“You get into the realities of projects and getting through permitting, projects slow down, and you sell a little less debt,” Epperson said.
Planned debt sales to complete bond projects already approved are not expected to impact the tax rate at this point, city staff said.
“We’re transitioning as a city from very fast growth, where the spigot for dollars coming into the community was free flowing, and that’s just not the case anymore,” Mayor Cole said. “Our growth rate is slowing but we still have pressures of catch-up. We’re going to be moving to more of a maintenance driven city from a growth city.”
Part of that shift will be reserving funding for expenses such as facility repairs or equipment replacements to be funded by cash instead of debt.
