Mayor's budget plan expected to top $1.7B
By Robbie Dingeman
Advertiser Staff Writer
Honolulu residents will learn more about what city government will pay for in the coming year when Mayor Mufi Hannemann unveils a proposed budget today that is expected to emphasize core services such as sewer and road work.
Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann will unveil the city budget at 2 p.m. today at Honolulu Hale.
The spending plan is expected to detail an operating budget of at least $1.3 billion and a construction budget that will top $400 million. This is Hannemann's first budget. Last year, Mayor Jeremy Harris submitted a budget of $1.5 billion.
WHEN IT HAPPENS
Last week, Hannemann revealed what's expected to be one of the most debated pieces of the budget — and one guaranteed to draw some complaints from the public — a series of increases in the city sewer service fee.
Those rates would increase as of July 1, the start of the 2005-06 fiscal year. Under the plan announced last week in his State of the City address, Hannemann will ask the City Council to increase the rates by 25 percent the first year and 10 percent in each of the five following years.
If approved as proposed, that would double the average monthly bill of $33 to $66 by July 1, 2010. The city last raised sewer rates 12 years ago.
The budget is also expected to call for more money to improve deteriorating roads and shore up police, fire and other public safety facilities and equipment.
The budget is subject to City Council approval. So far, key council members have indicated that they are open to most of Hannemann's proposals.
Harris put off politically unpopular rate and fee increases during his time in office, opting to "do more with less" by allowing some positions to remain vacant and trimming some city budgets while supporting certain initiatives.
Hannemann, a former council member, has vowed to be candid about the city's financial picture.
Hannemann is not expected to recommend any major change in real property tax rates, which are the biggest single source of revenue in the annual budget. Soaring property values will keep that revenue high without changes in the rates.
While he has acknowledged that longtime homeowners on fixed incomes face challenges because of the increased property values, he said the city can't afford to lower rates.
Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2429.
