This past week we began the first official day of Summer and each day until a little before Christmas we will have less and less daylight. Of course, we also have the warmer weather and many summer time activities and in a little over a week we can enjoy the five days of the Freedom Fest JC Celebration in Heritage Park. Before long you will hear the fireworks in our community as we celebrate the 247th Birthday of the United States. Or you can go to Rathert Field and watch the Junction City Brigade play in this Historic Ball Park. However, at the same time, local units of government are moving towards the “Finish Line” in preparing and completing their budget for the coming year.
City staff has worked on the budget for the past three or so months. Of course, I always say that the budget is a “year-round, 365 day” activity. How the City funds are spent daily affect the amount of cash carryover remaining at the end of the year. The amount of cash carry-over is a “big thing”, but that is truer here in Junction City. All you have to do is to go back about 13 years ago when the City’s financial crisis was at its peak. There were times, I have been told, when the City had less than $100,000 in the bank at any given time and even making payroll was a struggle. In some of the “tough” years, the year-end cash was extremely low. As the result of a great financial plan in the early years, coupled with the discipline over the past 10 or so years, the debt has been paid done substantially and at the same time the year-end cash amount has moved “North”. When General Obligation debt decreases, less money is needed for debt service and can be used elsewhere. Yes, we have more street issues to address.
So how much Cash carry-over or reserve should a City have? We hear the argument that it needs to be kept to a lower, because it is not fair to taxpayers to have a large reserve and taxes could be kept lower. Ok, I can buy that, but on a personal basis we all try to have that “Rainy Day” fund when everything does not go as planned. Same goes for the City. As we discussed earlier this spring, the City has the General Fund for expenses such as Police, Fire, Streets, and Parks and Recreation. The basic revenue for these funds is from property taxes, sales taxes, transfers from enterprise funds, and Cash Carryover. Naturally we don’t want to depend on the Cash Carryover to spend each year as if it drops too much, we have to make up for it in the future with increasing taxes. As the City has worked to improve its financial status, the amount of carryover is greatly considered by rating agencies such as Standard and Poore’s. This rating affects the City’s ability to borrow funds. We all know that everything does not always go as planned and we have to be in a financial position to deal with it.
You often hear the basis of the General Fund budget it the assessed valuation that we recently received from the County Clerk’s Office. As of June 9, the 2023 valuation for Junction City is $214.098,235. The valuation will change some by the time property taxes are levied in November, but that change is minor. This valuation is an increase of $20,208,692 over the final valuation in 2022 that was set in November. Yes, it is an increase of 10.4%. We all have seen our County Assessed values of our properties grow the last couple of years and new construction also helps this amount to get higher. Last year the valuation grew by a bit over $17.5 million from the previous year. On the other hand, for the 10 years previous to 2022, the valuation has stayed flat and even decreased in some years.
Ok, I can hear it now. “Junction City has the highest taxes of any places around”. What is interesting is that comment is probably made in any community. If you just look at the City property taxes, you will have to show me that Junction City is higher than other comparable cities. Remember the property tax bill you receive every November is not only for City property taxes, but for the County, the School District, and there is a small portion for the State. As the largest City in Geary County, the property tax owners in Junction City will pay over 72% of the property taxes for Geary County for the 2024 Budget. Likewise, a large part of the taxes for the School District are paid by property owners in Junction City.
As the City attempts to grow, everyone benefits. The tax base in the City does increase but does as well for the County and the School District. When there is an expense Geary County, regardless of if it is in the Junction City portion of the County or 20 miles out in the rural area, the lion’s share of the tax revenue to fund this is from City property tax payers. Yes, growth is important to the City, but equally as important to others as well.
I have often said that the “Perfect Tax” is one that someone else pays and I don’t have too. Unfortunately, it just does not work that way. Yes, I may complain when I get my property valuation notices or when the tax bill arrives each November, but it is all needed to take care of the place where I live, work, and play.