Thread by @socialistdogmom

it has been budget season for approximately eight thousand years but it's almost over 🙏

this tiny conference room without any seating for the public was a weird choice for this meeting. several members of the press are here & we’ve had to take chairs from the conference room table and move them against the walls. councilors will have to bring their own chairs?

“last year no one came in... no one cared,” said vice mayor heather hill, surprised to see five reporters + me already in the itty bitty conference room.

a city staffer says this meeting (to approve the budget) was once accomplished in 2 minutes and 45 seconds. heather says “that’s definitely not gonna happen today.”
another city staffer commented there’s a lot more press here than usual.

mayor walker is calling into the meeting. galvin, hill, and signer are present & we’re waiting on councilor bellamy and city attorney john blair.

city attorney john blair is addressing some matters related to the policy that allows the mayor to participate in the meeting via phone, including asking what state she’s in (she’s traveling at the moment & is in the car driving through georgia)

no one has any questions & they’ve moved to adopt the FY19 tax relief percentage. wes still hasn’t gotten here, so we’re gonna wait a minute to take the vote...

there was some confusion but the tax relief program for FY19 passed 5-0. now on to the FY19 real estate tax rate - it’s moved and seconded to keep it at $.95 per hundred dollars of assessed value. no discussion or dissent.

and the third vote, also 5-0, adopted the FY19 budget. that was fast! not 2min and 45 seconds, but under ten! budget season is finally over.