Ocean Springs News
MEDIA PRESS RELEASE - for immediate release
September 16th, 2009 | For details and information concerning this release, please contact Johnnie Bernhard at (228) 875-2209.
City of OS Adopts FY 2010 Budget; Reduces Millage by 8 Percent
Ocean Springs, MS – Property owners in Ocean Springs will soon see an eight percent reduction in their property tax as part of the new Fiscal Year 2009-2010 budget adopted Tuesday night at the Mayor and Board of Aldermen meeting. The reduction of two mils amounts to approximately $320,000 and will reduce the amount of city property taxes paid by business and homeowners. The new budget goes into affect October 1.
The new Fiscal year 2010 general fund totals $18,475,000, compared to $21,875,000 in FY 2009. This does not include grant funds except for salaries paid by grants. The City is maintaining a $2.5 million operating reserve of working capital – equal to 19% of the general fund – in addition to a $1.5 million emergency fund.
The Board also approved a $750 cost of living increase for all city employees. A four percent merit pay and salary realignment increase was also approved, to be distributed at the discretion of department heads.
“The Board worked hard to cut taxes while still rewarding our employees for their hard work,” said Mayor Connie Moran.
An additional savings to the budget was the Board’s decision to make the city work site a “tobacco-free work place.” This generated a three percent deduction to overall cost of employee health care.
In other action, the Board adopted the FY 2008 audit. The variance of the expected verus actual revenues over expenditures differed by only $204,000 out of the $21 million general fund budget that year.
