SAFFORD — After the City Council approved securing bonds to pay off debt from the pension program for first responders, Safford city staff discovered the city had no comprehensive financial guideline.
During a work session Monday, Finance Officer Kabrina Romero put forward a proposal that would include various city funds having a reserve of at least 50 percent, as well as establish a Revenue Stabilization Account, that would be used to offset declines or losses of revenue of up to 5 percent in the event of a catastrophic financial event.
“This is a last resort in those cases. This way we can have something to fall back on in trying to avoid any employee layoffs if they ever came up,” Romero said.
Under the new guideline, the city would then have three years to bring the Revenue Stabilization Account back to its pre-use level.
City Manager John Cassella explained that the council will be asked to adopt the comprehensive financial guideline at the same time as the 2022-23 budget within the next few months.
Romero said once adopted, the guideline would be reviewed annually and proposed updates would be brought to the council during budget talks.
