Durham County and the City of Durham will receive $2.2 million in Justice Assistance Grants from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to help fund public safety programs, among other projects, Durham City Manager Tom Bonfield said.
An internal task force has been assembled to monitor the various portions of the stimulus plan and determine which projects are eligible for more money, he said.
"We are evaluating every one of the programs that are being specified in the Economic Recovery Act," Bonfield said, noting that many of the programs the city will take into consideration are related to energy efficiency initiatives.
It is still unclear, however, how the city will use much of the stimulus money granted, and the City Council Board is waiting on a recommendation from Bonfield, City Council member Howard Clement said.
The Durham Police Department will receive $730,000 of the grant, City Council member Eugene Brown said, adding that he would like the funds to be used to create jobs within DPD.
"We really have to make sure we avoid any type of waste and abuse because the stimulus package is out there to create new jobs," Brown said.
City Council member Mike Woodard said some of these projects include current infrastructure plans that are "shovel-ready" and have been approved by the City Council Board.
"We just approved $8 million in road enhancements and we are probably going to approve another $8 million in road and transit enhancements," Woodard said.
In the March 16 City Council meeting, the board unanimously approved Budget Development Guidelines outlined in a memo written by Bonfield for the 2009-2010 fiscal budget. The budget will be presented to the City Council and public for discussion May 18.
At the meeting, Mayor Bill Bell asked that a section be added to the guidelines addressing the city's environmental sustainability and energy efficiency plans. He said keeping these issues at the forefront would be helpful to the city budget.
Woodard voted to approve the guidelines, but said he did not agree on cutting funding for new non-city agencies. Current non-city agencies will have an overall 3 to 10 percent decrease in funding, according to guidelines outlined by Bonfield. Non-city agencies that will be affected in the new fiscal year include the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival and the American Dance Festival.
"I think that it is short-sighted for us to eliminate a new agency that may have a great idea for us on one of the issues that we would like addressed," Woodard said.
Bonfield said he and Durham's Budget and Management Services department are reviewing possible increases in service charges for parking, solid waste, licenses, parks and recreation fees and Durham Area Transit Authority fares. But it is still too early to determine what service charges would be affected, he added.
Property taxes are currently at $0.54 for every $100 of the assessed property value and will remain the same for the upcoming fiscal year, according to the guidelines. Residential water and sewage rates and service charges will also stay the same.
Woodard said it is unreasonable to ask residents to pay higher property tax in a time when they face possible salary cuts or job losses.
"In a challenging economic time like this I think it is our priority to look first at the services that we can eliminate or merge before we ask citizens to pay more in property tax," he said.
Bonfield said he will review city employees' pay and benefits, which according to the guidelines make up a substantial portion of Durham's overall operational cost. Some of the compensation measures that will be evaluated are those regarding salary increases for job performance and longevity.
New job positions within the city will only be granted on a temporary basis, Bonfield said.
Brown said developing the upcoming budget will be a challenge because of the approximately $25 million deficit the city faces. Cuts will be made to obtain more funds but it is still unclear what departments and programs will be affected, he added.
"It's going to be hard because there should be no sacred cows, everything has to be looked at," he said.
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