Budgets & Financial Reports

Through the City budget, the Mayor and City Council determine the level of funding for City operations and services, as well as funding for capital projects.  The City budget is adopted annually for the fiscal year beginning July 1 through June 30 in accordance with North Carolina General Statutes (G.S. 159-13), which require that the budget be balanced.  In other words, total expenditures cannot exceed the amount of revenues and appropriated fund balance.

By State statute, the proposed budget must be delivered to the Mayor and Council no later than June 1st and adopted before July 1st.  Budget workshops are held during May and June, and a public hearing is held so citizens can voice their questions and concerns about the proposed budget.

Proposed FY 2011 Budget

Copies of the FY 2009-2010 Approved Budget are available online for review or you may view a copy at the City Clerk's office at City Hall, 815 New Bridge Street, or at the Public Library on Doris Avenue.

Previous City budgets and financial reports are available for view at the Budget & Financial Report Archives webpage.

The budget process begins in November when Finance staff prepares the Budget Manual, which gives departments guidance on submitting their requests.  Finance then holds training sessions to provide additional guidance and assistance to key staff.  In addition, members of the Finance staff are assigned as department liaisons to assist with budget preparation, answer questions, and help solve any problems arising during the process.

Once all requests are submitted to Finance, reviewed, and entered into the City's financial system, the City Manager, Finance Director, and department liaisons meet with each department and division to discuss their needs.  Revenue projections are also prepared, which determine how many of the departments' requests can be funded and how much must be cut from the budget.  Once all decisions are made, Finance staff prepares the budget book and provides copies to Council and the City Manager.  Copies are also provided for public viewing in the City Clerk's Office and the Onslow County Public Library.

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FY2009-2010 Budget

The budget book is divided into several sections; the most significant ones are the City Manager's Budget Message, the Budget Summary and the Revenue Summary sections.  Other sections include information about the individual departments and divisions, to include their Mission Statement, Goals for FY09-10, Budget Highlights, and a Departmental Summary which presents expenditure and revenue information in both table and graphic formats.  A Trend Analysis explains the increases and decreases that have occurred from FY06-07 through the budget year, FY09-10.  Most sections also include performance measures.

The analysis of the property tax levy is included in the Revenue Summary Section.  Capital projects information and requests for capital outlay equipment are included in the Capital Projects and Equipment Requested section, and the Debt Service section summarizes the projected installment payments for FY09-10.  The budget book also includes an Explanation of Terms and the proposed Fee Schedule.

The departments are grouped into the following six functional areas:  (1) General Government, which includes the departments that provide administrative support for day-to-day operations; (2) Public Safety, composed of Police and Fire; (3) Recreation and Parks; (4) Development Services, which includes departments that provide direct services to the Citizens, such as Planning, Building Inspections, Code Enforcement, and Community Development; (5) Public Services, which includes the engineering, public works and public utilities functions necessary to build and maintain the city's infrastructure, as well as the solid waste disposal and stormwater/water quality functions; and (6) the Internal Service funds, which provide in-house support to City departments.