City considering hiring freeze, furloughs and $21,600 pay raise for council, mayor

Proposed City of Kinston budget for '20-'21 FY impacted by COVID-19

The Kinston City Council will consider the proposed budget for the next fiscal year on Monday evening.

The proposed $111 million budget takes into account anticipated drops in revenue for the city due to impacts from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, while also including raises for city council members. 

Kinston City Manager Tony Sears said this was one of the most difficult budgets he has put together in his career, due to the uncertainties surrounding the economic situation. 

Sears said property tax revenue is down, due to property reevaluations for some businesses, while the exact impact of the shutdown on sales tax revenue will not be known until later in the year.  Sears also said the speed with which more businesses are allowed to open under the next phase of Gov. Cooper’s reopening plan will impact the city’s revenues. 

“We have the convergence of the lost property tax, the lost sales tax, the lost occupancy tax, still waiting on reimbursements from FEMA for three hurricanes, and then on the other side we have the increases of healthcare costs, retirement costs, and other costs increasing. The revenues and expenditures are trending in opposite directions, which really makes this difficult,” Sears said. 

The proposed budget eliminates nearly all capital outlay projects, including purchases of new police cars and other vehicles for the city. Sears said all departments were asked to cut costs wherever they could. 

The budget also includes over $1.5 million in funding from the city’s general reserve, nearly three times the amount the city has usually needed to utilize, Sears said. 

Once a budget is adopted, Sears said, there will still be the possibility that city employees could be affected by the revenue shortages. A hiring freeze, furloughs, and layoffs could be necessary later in 2020, as the city receives precise figures on sales tax revenue from the period of the shutdown. 

City Councilman Sammy Aiken said the goal of the City Council was to continue to provide services to the community and enhance the quality of life for residents and provide a good atmosphere for businesses and visitors. 

Aiken said that despite the cuts to the budget, the City Council hopes to avoid furloughs or layoffs for city employees.

The proposed budget includes a more than forty percent salary increase for City Council members and the mayor. The June 30, 2020 year-end budget estimates a $52,200 line item for Board Member Salaries. The FY 20-21 request shows an amount of $73,800. Under the proposed budget the mayor would receive an annual salary of $16,800 and council members $11,400 each.

Aiken said he recognizes that a salary increase for council members in the face of potential employee furloughs could be perceived negatively, but he noted that surrounding communities have much higher rates of compensation for council members. 

Council members, Aiken said, put in a lot more time than simply two council meetings a month, assisting citizens with many issues, both within city jurisdiction and outside of it. 

“City Council hasn’t had a raise in about fifteen or twenty years, and the raise would be more comparable to the cities around us, “ Aiken said. 

Mayor Pro Tem Felicia Solomon, Council Member Krystal Suggs and Council Member Antonio Hardy did not respond to requests for comment. Council Member Robbie Swinson IV referred us to Mayor Don Hardy. Mayor Hardy was unable to provide comment to Neuse News prior to the public hearing on Monday.

A public hearing on the proposed budget will take place on Monday, June 15 at 7 p.m. during the regularly scheduled City Council meeting. Citizens can participate by submitting a Citizens Comment Form that can be found on the City of Kinston website at https://www.ci.kinston.nc.us/.

The proposed budget can be viewed online at the City’s website or in person at City Hall or the Public Library.