By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
The numbers within the March financial statement reported Thursday by Kim Rupp, Hays finance director, were pretty rosy.
Revenues in March totaled $2,594,262, an increase of $331,530 compared to the same period last year. Sales tax receipts were up nearly 4 percent in 2019, and so far in 2020, continue a positive trend.
The receipts lag about two months behind, Rupp cautioned city commissioners, and they are going to decline as retail spending decreases during the coronavirus pandemic.
The 1.25 percent retail sales tax is the largest source of money for the city's general fund. The general fund revenues pay for city services including police, fire, street, parks, swimming pool and the golf course. It also provides funding to outside agencies such as economic development, United Way, CARE Council, and Fort Hays State University/City of Hays scholarships.
Working with Rupp, Toby Dougherty, city manager, along with department heads, have projected what they expect the "obvious losses" will be in sales tax collections and the transient guest tax.
"The further we go along, we're going to be losing things like court fines and forfeitures, things like that," Dougherty said. "We'll try to figure out what the effect of that is going to be."
"The departments have all been tasked with finding what they can cut in the 2020 budget. As everybody is preparing their 2021 budget, the mandate was, let's keep things as lean as possible for 2021."
Dougherty reassured commissioners the city is in a good financial position and has adequately funded reserves.
"We aren't living hand-to-mouth or paycheck-to-paycheck.
"We have a good unreserved fund balance. If we make cuts or have a revenue loss, we do have the ability to absorb that and hopefully recoup that at a later date."
Commissioner Michael Berges, noting some communities have furloughed city employees, asked if Hays is at risk of that.
"We're not there yet," Dougherty responded, "and it's really not something I'd consider right now.
"Worst case scenario, we might put hiring freezes into place and not fill positions as they vacate. We have a certain amount of turnover and could hopefully downsize that way.
"Furloughing is a pretty drastic cut that I don't see us taking right now." The city has 181 employees.
According to Dougherty, Hays hotels currently have an occupancy rate of 15 to 20 percent.
A 2 percent increase in the transient guest tax two years ago is earmarked for partial funding of the North Vine Street Corridor Improvement Project, along with a $6 million federal grant.