Awaiting State Budget Approval, Ganim To Submit Leap-Of-Faith Fiscal Plan To City Council

Mayor Joe Ganim next week is scheduled to submit his spending plan to the City Council for the budget year starting July 1 loaded with a number of variables awaiting passage of the state budget. So much of what happens during this legislative session impacts municipal budgets across the state.

The mayor will issue a budget that calls for no tax increase, while (hold your breath) the financial wrangling plays out in Hartford with Bridgeport’s legislative delegation, the largest in the state, jawboning pockets of money as a safety net to make the municipal plan whole.

City leaders and financial bean counters are not alone relying on Hartford insiders to persuade legislative leaders and Governor Ned Lamont to open the financial spigot with the state swimming billions deep in surpluses.

Lamont is being particularly persnickety about not messing much with the financial guardrails that limit spending, particularly now with a litany of unknowns from the Trump administration pulling back on traditional benefits involving education, veterans, Medicaid and numerous federal grants filtered through the state budget that comes the municipal way.

Municipal leaders will submit the city budget, as required by the City Charter, on Tuesday April 1. The proposed spending plan will then be in the hands of the seven-member Budget & Appropriations Committee that will process the better part of two months reviewing the plan, interviewing department heads about priorities, conducting public hearings before making changes and going to the full council for approval.

The mayor has a veto window, if needed, prior to setting of the mill rate.

The city recently empaneled a 13-member Charter Revision Commission to review the document that guides municipal rules and regulations. One topic under consideration to bring to voters for approval is buying some time on the April calendar while the state budget plays out to craft a local budget without so many unknowns.