VALLEY MILLS, Texas (KXXV) — Council members spent time going over their yearly spending — the second budget workshop was held to see how council members could cut expenses.
- City looks to cut expenses
- More workshops will be held before a final decision is made
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
"We feel like we're somewhat going back to square one and redoing some things," said Craig Godby, Mayor Pro Tem of Valley Mills.
Godby says the yearly city budget workshop was held a little later this year — and with some council members being new and others being seasoned, keeping track of the city spending is a big responsibility but one that's needed.
"We recognize okay this is an area where we can direct money, we like to do more in our city but there are limitations," Godby said.
Final decisions on the city budget have not yet been made, but the city council is already looking for ways to make cuts.
Several options are being discussed, including the option of not adding more officers to the city.
Godby says the city could save roughly $50,000 to $60,000 if they stick to their current number of officers, which also means having one less police vehicle on the road.
"Why not wait a year instead of hiring a sergeant, wait another year if we gotta cut the budget back, and then we can cut here and get by with three officers," Godby said.
"If we can do that and still serve our community like we need to that's something we have to look at."
While some budget issues were tabled until later this week, Godby says there's a possibility the city could be over budget by an estimated $100,000.
"We've got to be good stewardesses of the money that we have and we've got to be accountable for the public for what we do," he said.
