NW Illinois News

City of East Dubuque City Council met April 24.

Here are the minutes provided by the council:

Please Stand for the Pledge of Allegiance

1. 24-0427 Call to Order – Mayor Digman

Start Time: 6:00 p.m.

Alderperson Belken, Alderperson Burgmeier, Alderperson Degenhardt, Alderperson Robey and Mayor Digman Absent - Alderperson Fluhr and Alderperson Meier

NEW BUSINESS:

2. 24-0428 Presentation and Discussion of City Budget in the City of East Dubuque, Jo Daviess County, Illinois / Mayor Digman, City Manager Seitz

Fire Dept – Officers are on their own line item. Will see if council will pass the 1% increase this year for the department. Then just went through the big items. Looking to have an all-day seminar that needs to be paid for up front but will be looking to donations to help pay. Will also have a fee for anyone outside our department who will be attending. Will also be getting new software because the one they have was bought out.

Ambulance – Think the ambulance loan has two years left. This was the 0% loan that they received.

General Fund Budget – this is the portion that is funded by the taxpayers. This portion funds Administration, Police, Fire and Public Works. Administration reflects salaries for the Treasurer that is open right now and reflects merit-based pay increases. In the past the non-union employees also received union-based increases. Engineering has gone down because we are not taking on new projects.

Police Dept – Taken on the new responsibility of tracking a new budget. Saving with not replacing officer that left. Going to separate holiday and overtime since this has been together. Cody is a certified trainer that will cut down on the all-day classes at other cities. Need to make sure that all officers are up to date on all certifications. Also asked that they do training on their day at work. Saving money by transferring our squad internet from state to FirstNet. Will also make sure that fuel is being distributed correctly between departments. Will need to upgrade to new radio’s because of being forced to go to Starcom. These will be covered at 85% by a grant. Will need to replace the 2020 Ford but will be putting money towards this. Will also need to update body cams and in car cameras. But right now will do the body cams and hope to receive camera grant that is coming out this year. This budget comes in $53,000 less than the current year. City Manager added in money to his budget because he felt it was shaved a little to tight. This was an honest budget.

Question – Talking about body cams and car cameras and we have how many squad cars. Five. Is there a need for five squad cars. Yes, there is. If one should break down or go in for maintenance that leaves one car and if something would happen to that then where would you be.

Public Works – Tony has stepped up this last year. Hoping this year will have less water main breaks than last year. This debt is really killing us. Pulled a lot of the one-time expenditures out so that the budget will be truer to what it should be. The biggest impact of this budget is that this is going up when most of the others are going down. Will explain when get to the enterprise budget. We will be moving the Vactor truck to general instead of being paid out of Enterprise. The loan payments had been paid out of the sewer but ask that it be taken out of the public works.

Did not put monies from the second and third dispensaries toward this budget.

Enterprise Fund – for the last number of years it has been in the red. That is obviously unsustainable as is. We will then address what we are going to do about it. Will be taking and separating all one-time expenditures from every year processes. Water is going from two employees to one and will also have a decrease in overtime also. The sewer was a little steadier this year. Garbage rate did go up 3% with contract.

Had some difficult decisions to make this year. The rates are supposed to cover everyday costs and then also maintaining the infrastructure. With the number of water main breaks, we are having it is showing that it has not been taking care of the infrastructure. To take care of this deficit will need to raise services that should have been done over the last few years. The actual overhead should be charged over $200,000. But not being able to cover it so was not taken out of funds.

No action required.

3. 24-0429 Speakers from the Floor

4. 24-0430 Adjourn

End Time: 7:25 p.m.

Motion by Alderperson Degenhardt to Adjourn second by Alderperson Burgmeier ROLL CALL: Ayes – Alderperson Belken, Alderperson Burgmeier, Alderperson Degenhardt and Alderperson Robey Motion carried Absent - Alderperson Fluhr and Alderperson Meier

https://www.cityofeastdubuque.com/agenda/minutes/april-24-2024-minutes