Despite a major hike in health care claims over the past year, Charleston's overall budget will increase by more than $1.6 million in fiscal 2017-2018.
City Council's Committee on Finance quickly approved a proposed budget on Monday after city officials detailed significant revenue and expenditure changes last week.
The $96.2 million budget, up from $94 million, grapples with a nearly $2 million increase in health care expenses for the coming year.
City Manager David Molgaard said last week most of those claims were filed by retired employees.
"It could just be a spike, but we know health care claims are going up all over the place, and we've been very fortunate that we've had a good number of years with little or no increase in those claim dollars," Molgaard said.
Out of all the expenditures under personal services, which include health care, retirement, salaries and wages, the total increase going into the next fiscal year is only $1.2 million.
That's partially because $582,000 in salary and wages savings will offset the spike in health care.
Molgaard said the city always has budgeted employee positions at the top of the pay scale, a practice it's no longer doing.
Instead, roughly $400,000 will be set aside in a compensation initiative fund for considering future salary adjustments according to the city's performance management system that's currently under way.
"This budget doesn't structurally provide for across-the-board increases or salary adjustments, per se," Molgaard said.
"We don't have the leeway we had in the past, but we're still in good shape because we have those reserves in place."
While there isn't much projected change under the city's business and occupation tax revenues, which make up nearly half the total budget, it is expecting an uptick in other tax revenues.
Property tax revenue is slated to increase by nearly $692,000.
While the current budget outlined $13.9 million in property tax revenue, City Finance Director Joe Estep said he projects that figure will be closer to $14.2 million by the end of the fiscal year on June 30.
Estep expects an additional $330,000 in property taxes in the coming year from increased levy rates.
The rate for Class II, or owner-occupied properties, will increase from 18.52 cents per hundred dollars of assessed value, to 19.58 cents.
Class III and Class IV levy rates, which include non-owner occupied properties such as rentals and businesses, would increase from 35.16 cents per hundred dollars of assessed value to 39.16 cents.
Both the hotel occupancy tax and utility tax revenues are also projected to increase by $250,000 each, Estep said.
Council will vote on the budget at a special meeting in Council chambers at 7 p.m. on March 21.
Reach Elaina Sauber at elaina.sauber@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-3051 or follow @ElainaSauber on Twitter.