The Bellaire City Council will hold public hearings at 6 p.m. Aug. 15 and 16 on the budget for the 2023 fiscal year, which starts Oct. 1.
The proposed $23,934,337 budget — up from $23,300,952 this year — can be viewed on the city’s website, bellairetx.gov. Because of the city’s growing tax base, the proposal calls for no increase in the property tax rate, holding it at $0.4473 for each $100 of assessed property value.
Among points of interest:
- Salaries and benefits account for about three-quarters of the budget at $17.5 million, 11 percent higher than the current budget.
- A 1.5 percent cost of living increase is included for all employees, with a 3.5 percent merit step increase for employees who qualify.
- $9.6 is budgeted for the city’s debt repayment.
- About $8.5 million is budgeted for capital improvements, with the biggest chunk of that — some $3 million — earmarked for regional drainage projects.
The city has a “living” webpage on the city website for the proposed FY 2023-2027 Capital Improvements Plan, to be updated based on council’s direction.
One update causing a ruckus on social media that was expected to carry over at the Aug. 8 City Council meeting (past Essentials’ deadline) was council’s direction during the budget presentation to include only design of a new animal control facility in the FY2023 budget, instead of also budgeting $425,000 for construction. Design is budgeted at $75,000
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