Table 1: Summary of Recommended Appropriations and Tax Rates

Highlights of the recommended 2023 budget include:

• $3.7 million for a pay program benefitting employees not included in a collective bargaining agreement. This provides up to a 4% pay increase beginning mid-year in 2023.

• An increase of $7.5 million or 4.5% for the County Police due to pay increases approved in collective bargaining agreements, lateral pay, shift differential, and paid family leave. The budget does not include $1.95 million in vehicle replacements that was approved as a 2022 supplemental appropriation to meet next year’s manufacturer ordering deadlines.

• Additional funds for the Department of Transportation and Public Works to expand neighborhood services including property maintenance and demolitions ($800,000), install electric vehicle chargers in the Courts Garage ($385,000), support on-call maintenance services for County properties ($900,000), and on-call civil plan review services ($500,000).

• An increase of $6.7 million or 8.7% for the Department of Public Health to provide the appropriations necessary to maintain existing service levels and fully encumber medical service contracts.

• $2.6 million for the Board of Elections budget to replace poll pad hardware and software that is at the end of life.

• $939,445 to fund 16 new corrections officer positions in the Department of Justice Services to provide shift relief and offset overtime expenditures as part of implementing recommendations of the recent operations review of the Department.

• Continuation of funding for 19 new positions for the Prosecuting Attorney authorized by the Council during 2022 ($1.5 million).

• An additional $678,000 (fully reimbursed by the State) for the Family Court to fund services associated with “Raise the Age” legislation.

• A $772,172 or 31.1% increase in the County Council budget due to the addition of 5 new positions, position reclassifications, and new software requested for the Auditor’s Office.

• An increase of $1.8 million or 35.8% for the Office of County Executive budget due to the annualization of position transfers required to comply with a 2022 County Charter amendment. When adjusted for these Charter-required transfers, the Office’s budget increases by $176,649 or 2.7% due to required insurance costs and the 2023 employee pay program.

• Elimination of a one-time appropriation ($6 million) for demolition of the Jamestown Mall. If these funds are not encumbered during 2022, they will need to be reappropriated in 2023.

• An increase of $28.0 million or 50.0% for The Children’s Service Fund to provide sufficient appropriation authority to accommodate an overlap in grant funding cycles.

• A decrease of $12.0 million for the Convention & Recreation Trust Fund due to the elimination of an appropriation for the Hazelwood Ballfields Project and the temporary elimination of debt service appropriations for the 2022 Convention Center bonds due to the use of capitalized interest to pay debt service costs until 2025. The recommended budget includes $500,000 for a feasibility study related to a potential track and field complex.

The recommended budget also includes:

• $206.4 million for mass transit funds which reflect the estimated maximum amount of sales tax revenue that may be distributed to Bi-State Development for public transportation services. Actual distributions of these funds will be based upon the budget you adopt for Bi-State next summer. Appropriations are set at the maximum amount to comply with bond requirements.

• $45.0 million for transportation capital funds to support the five-year capital construction program of the Department of Transportation and Public Works. The 2023 recommended workplan will support $102.3 million of project activity, including $13.7 million of construction work in 2022 and prior year awarded construction projects.

II. Revenues

Revenues in all budgeted funds are projected to be $860.2 million in 2023, an increase of $25.2 million or 3.0% over the revised 2022 estimate In the operating funds, revenues are projected to decrease by $2.2 million or 0.4%.

Highlights of the revenue projection include:

• $26.2 million or 4.3% growth in tax revenues, which account for 75 percent of all revenue collected, including: o Slight growth in property tax revenues (1.4%). Despite anticipated growth in assessed values through the 2023 reassessment process, Missouri law requires property tax rates to be reduced to offset any revenue growth that would occur due to higher property values. o Continued growth in sales tax revenue (5.0%). Sales tax revenue has been strong since 2020, and this trend is expected to continue due to consumer demand and higher prices. o Continued recovery in the Hotel-Motel tax (10% growth) and Casino taxes (3.8%) growth, although both remain below their pre-pandemic highs.

• A $1.0 million or 0.5% decrease in all other revenue sources combined, which account for 25 percent of all revenue collected

This estimate does not include significant revenues that could come to the County in the next year. These include a potential utility gross receipts tax judgement, settlement(s) related to opioid litigation, an agreement on distribution of the NFL settlement, sales of real property, and any additional funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (SLFRF) that the Council may choose to recover to offset County revenues lost due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These funds would be added to the financial plan when there is a level of certainty associated with them.

III. Financial Plan Challenges

Each fund in the recommended budget has a separately managed financial plan. Two of these funds continue to provide management challenges – the General Revenue Fund and the Health Fund. The General Revenue Fund is estimated to have a structural deficit of $31.4 million (9.0%) in 2022, and $41.3 million (11.5%) in 2023. The Health Fund is estimated to have a structural deficit of $10.5 million (16.8%) in 2022 and $15.8 million (23.1%) in 2023. To preserve existing program and services levels, I propose to cover these deficits by lowering our reserves in these funds.

As you can see from the deficits detailed above, the imbalance between the costs of providing government services to our residents and the amount of revenue provided continues to grow When the one-time federal COVID funds injected into our financial plan in 2021 to keep us afloat for a few years are exhausted, we will be forced to reduce service levels or seek additional revenue.

Sources of new revenue could include a “roll-up” of the property tax rate in evennumbered years, a ballot initiative to increase the property tax rate in any year or revisiting the issue of a use tax to provide revenue for county operations and level the playing field for brickand-mortar retailers in the County. Our reserves are a finite resource that cannot be used indefinitely to balance the budget.

Absent a significant change in our service level or revenue structure, the 2024 recommended budget will look much different from what I propose to you today. I look forward to working with you to address the challenges that lie ahead.

Respectfully submitted,

Attachment

Sam Page County Executive

Summary of Council Action

Prior to adoption of the 2023 budget, the County Council reduced the County Executive’s recommended budget by $25,040,333 or 2.5% as detailed below: positions, reduce funding equal to 75% of vacant positions, and increase funding for retirement plan contribution funding equal to 75% of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution funding equal to 75% of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution funding equal to 75% of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution funding equal to 75% of vacant positions, eliminate funding for vehicle replacements, and increase funding for retirement plan contribution funding equal to 75% of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution funding for professional services and increase funding for retirement plan contribution of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution

Fund Department/Office Change Impact of Council Action

General Revenue Administration

($746,011) Eliminate 3 new positions, reduce funding equal to 75% of vacant positions, and increase funding for retirement plan contribution

General Revenue Police ($7,011,176) Reduce funding equal to 75% of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution

General Revenue Planning

$2,247 Increase funding for retirement plan contribution

General Revenue Transportation & Public Works ($2,945,717) Eliminate funding for vehicle charging infrastructure, eliminate expansion of property maintenance/ demolition activity, reduce funding equal to 75% of vacant positions, and increase funding for retirement plan contribution

General Revenue Revenue ($421,194) Reduce funding equal to 75% of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution

General Revenue Justice Services ($3,187,961) Reduce funding equal to 75% of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution

General Revenue Human Services ($670,136) Reduce funding equal to 75% of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution

Public Health

Reduce funding equal to 75% of vacant positions and increase funding for retirement plan contribution

ST. LOUIS COUNTY EXECUTIVE

CHIEF ADMINSTRATIVE OFFICER

CHIEF COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER

Sam Page

Deanna Venker

Doug Moore

PROSECUTING ATTORNEY Wesley Bell

ASSESSOR Jake Zimmerman

St. Louis County Council

Rita Heard Days, Chair

Kelli Dunaway

Tim Fitch

Shalonda D. Webb, Vice‐Chair 4th District

Directors

Karen J. Aroesty* Administration

Eric Fey

Rick Stream

Emily Koenig

Board of Elections (D)

Board of Elections (R)

Children’s Service Fund

Diann L. Valenti County Council

Beth Orwick County Counselor

Rodney Crim Economic Development Partnership

Howard Hayes

Human Services

Charles Henderson Information Technology

Hope Whitehead Judicial Administration

Scott Anders Justice Services

Circuit Court Judges

Thomas C. Albus

John N. Borbonus

Heather R. Cunningham

William M. Corrigan, Jr.

Jason D. Dodson

Margaret T. Donnelly

Joseph S. Dueker

Associate Circuit Court Judges

Lorne J. Baker

Ellen W. Dunne

Mondonna L. Ghasedi

Joseph L. Green

Matthew H. Hearne

Courtney Whiteside Municipal Court

Thomas M. Ott

Parks and Recreation

Jacob W. Trimble* Planning

Col. Kenneth Gregory Police

Timothy M. Weaks Public Administrator

Kate Donaldson* and Dr. Jim Hinrichs*

Erica Savage*

John D. Bales

Stephanie Leon‐Streeter,

PE*

*Acting/Interim

Renée Hardin‐Tammons

Bruce F. Hilton

Kristine Allen Kerr

Virginia W. Lay

Ellen Sue Levy

Brian H. May

Nancy Watkins McLaughlin

Robert Heggie

Megan Julian

John R. Lasater

Julia Pusateri Lasater

Amanda B. McNelley

Division of Performance Management & Budget

Paul Kreidler, PMB Director

Mary Hografe, Budget Manager

Dylan Lenzen, Performance Manager

James Washburn, County Data Officer

Public Health

Revenue

Spirit of St. Louis Airport

Transportation & Public Works

Mary Elizabeth Ott

Ellen H. Ribaudo

Richard M. Stewart

David Lee Vincent

Dean P. Waldemer

Stanley J. Wallach

Joseph L. Walsh, III

Jeffrey P. Medler

John Newsham

Krista S. Peyton

Nicole S. Zellweger

Lydia Boote, Performance Analyst

Luke Ehrenstrom, Budget Analyst

Jason LaBarbera, Budget Analyst

Alex Reichert, Performance Analyst

Sunita Sankpal, Data Analyst

The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) presented a Distinguished Budget Presentation Award to St. Louis County, Missouri, for its annual budget for the fiscal year beginning January 1, 2022. To receive this award, a governmental unit must publish a budget document that meets program criteria as a policy document, as an operations guide, as a financial plan, and as a communications device.

This award is valid for a period of one year only. The county believes that this budget and business plan continues to conform to program requirements and it will be submitted to GFOA to determine its eligibility for another award.

READER’S GUIDE

The St. Louis County Business Plan contains a narrative discussion of the county’s financial plan, revenue estimates and department budgets. Each department in the budget is described with narrative, as well as charts and graphs, and the budget is detailed by department, division, and fund.

Business Plan Organization

This business plan begins with an introduction to St. Louis County as well as information on financial policies and how the business plan is developed. This section also contains combined statements of revenues, expenditures and changes, and a long‐term forecast for the General Revenue Fund.

An executive summary provides the reader with a synopsis of the business plan.

The revenue forecast provides information on 2022 and 2023 estimated revenues by fund. Property and sales taxes are highlighted in this section and a description of non‐general funds is provided.

The narrative sections incorporate all funds appropriated to a department. Departments are organized into five program areas:

 Economic Development and Infrastructure

 Health and Well‐Being

 Public Safety

 Recreation and Culture

 General Government

The remaining chapters are devoted to debt management, the Capital Improvement Program, grants, and supplemental information.

The Debt Management chapter summarizes the county’s credit rating, property tax levy, and bonded debt.

The Capital Improvement Program highlights capital projects that are funded in the 2023 budget, as well as those under consideration for funding through 2027.

The Grants chapter details the estimated grant funding received by county departments in 2022 and funding projected for 2023.

The final chapter, Supplemental Information, provides historical tax rate information, a fund dictionary, glossary, and description of acronyms.

Department/Office Narrative Organization

Each narrative within the business plan is structured in the same way. The narrative is a descriptive and visual representation of the department or office’s objectives. The following pages provide a description of each section in the narrative.

The final page of each narrative is a budget summary that is divided into three sections:

 Budget Summaries: o Program Summary: expenditures and appropriations for the department divided into appropriated divisions and/or programs. o Expenditure Category Summary: expenditures and appropriations for the entire department divided into personnel, operating, and capital categories. o Fund Summary: expenditures and appropriations for the entire department divided by fund. Some departments receive appropriations from more than one fund.

 Program Income: revenue generated through department activities.

 Authorized Positions / FTE: summary of positions and full‐time equivalents (FTEs) authorized for the department (all funds).

Data provided in this budget summary is organized by year:

 2019 Actual: total expenditures and encumbrances incurred, revenue received, and total number of positions in the department/division/program during fiscal year 2019.

 2020 Actual: total expenditures and encumbrances incurred, revenue received, and total number of positions in the department/division/program during fiscal year 2020.

 2021 Actual: total expenditures and encumbrances incurred, revenue received, and total number of positions in the department/division/program during fiscal year 2021.

 2022 Adjusted Budget: appropriations, revenue estimates, and positions as of August 2022. This considers transfers into and out of accounts, as well as any supplemental appropriations passed by the County Council.

 2023 Department Request: 2023 appropriation and positions requested by the department and projected program revenue for consideration by the County Executive.

 2023 County Executive Recommended: 2023 appropriation and positions recommended by the County Executive to the County Council along with projected program revenue.

 2023 Council Adopted: 2023 appropriations and positions adopted by the County Council along with projected program revenue.

From Budget Book to Business Plan

In previous years, the Budget Office prepared a line‐item budget, while analysts separately worked with departments to solidify goals and key performance indicators to measure impact. The creation of the Division of Performance Management and Budget married the performance management aspect of county government administration with its financial management. The layout of the 2023 business plan draws a clearer connection between the work that departments do, how those activities are funded, and how effective they are at serving the residents of St. Louis County.

Additionally, in 2022, staff worked with departments and offices across the county to reconsider their performance measures. As a result, many measures were dropped from the Business Plan as they were not being actively used by departments to measure efficiency or effectiveness. Many new measures were identified that stem directly from department priorities and are included in the 2023 Business Plan. Although most of these measures lack data at present, they were retained in the plan to indicate how departments and offices plan to measure success in future years.

2023 Priorities

In addition to reconsidering performance measures, many departments revised or replaced their priorities. These priorities are captured in each departments’ section of the Business Plan, along with a code that ties them back to the County Executive’s Strategic Plan.

As shown in the table below, the County Executive’s strategic priorities fall into three broad categories under the umbrella of “A St. Louis County for Everyone:” health and safety for everyone, opportunity for everyone, and good government for everyone. The first, health and safety for everyone, will be achieved by working to eliminate the Covid‐19 pandemic and opioid epidemic, reducing health disparities within our community, and reforming policing and the criminal justice system.

The second priority, opportunity for everyone, includes providing access to family‐sustaining jobs, promoting inclusive community development, improving quality of life, and rebuilding pride and optimism in the county.

Finally, good government for everyone, focuses internally on county operations to transform the constituent experience, improve the effectiveness of county services, and ensure that those services are as efficient and responsible as possible.