Budget Meeting Last Night

Last night the board met to go over the 2006-2007 budget with the staff. We worked through the budget fund by fund and discussed the important line items in each fund. Overall the budget changed by about $80,000 from it's first pass. This is the first budget to be prepared under the new committee format and Finance committee chair Patty Blauvelt and vice chair Sherry Perkowitz did a very nice job and are to be commended. It's my intention to review the budget formally on the first meeting in May and then pass it on the second meeting in May.
In addition two days ago we got our EAV from Lake County so we were better able to approximate our fund balances. (The village's EAV by the way was $319 million, last year it was $243 million, and 5 years ago it was $73 million). The picture about shows (left to right Trustee Don Newby, Public Works Director Davis Clark, Trustee Bob del Prato, Trustee Brian Brubaker, in the background Village Administrator Bam Peterson and then deputy Chief Francis Foy. The foreground is my Coke and part of my leg)