Algonquin's Amazing Feat, a Balanced Budget

Algonquin could give Illinois and Washington D.C. officials a lesson on how to balance a budget without raising taxes or going further into debt.

The village has a balanced $39 million budget for the upcoming year, fiscal year 2014, which begins May 1.

Algonquin was able to balance its budget while maintain its roads and village services_ even with a lower property tax levy, said Michael Kumbera, assistant to the village manager Tuesday.

There will be no new taxes, he said. Nor will there be any new debt. Algonquin will not hire any new personnel.

Kumbera gave trustees an overview of the proposed budget. The board will vote on it at an upcoming meeting. A few highlights:

General Operating Fund

$19 million

This fund is for day-to-day operations, Kumbera said. Algonquin had to make difficult choices in the last few years due to the economy but has come out strong, he said. The village has been able to keep some costs down by working with neighboring communities on intergovernmental agreements, he said. 

Police Department

$9 million

The budget includes the purchase of two Dodge Charger squad cars and a car video recording system. No new positions will be added in the department. A vacant Community Service Officer position will not be filled.

Public Works (Streets)

$1.4 million

Public Works will purchase two trucks, at $220,000, that can be used as snowplows or as flatbeds in an effort to increase utilization of trucks and reduce its fleet to keep maintenance costs down.

Public Works (Forestry Department)

$1.8 million

Two projects are planned: replacements of an arbor at Riverfront Park and partial path replacement at James B. Woods Park. The department will also continue its parkway tree replacement program to fight the Emerald ash borer.

Unlike Illinois’s pension crisis, Algonquin’s police pension is sound, Algonquin’s Finance Director Jack Walde said.

Pensions are funded by employee contributions, village contributions and investment income, he said. The value is $2.2 million. There are two officers who’ve retired and two officers on disability, he said.

“The trustees of the pension fund used very conservative funding approach and it is sound,” he said. “We are comfortable with how it is being done here.”