Every year, the Mayor is required by the Kentucky Constitution to pass a balanced budget, or spending plan. A balanced budget means the city cannot spend more money than it has coming in.
The city’s budget covers what is known as a fiscal year, which runs from July 1 to June 30. It reflects all the services the city provides to the 740,000 people who live in our 386 square miles.
The budget for the current 2011-2012 fiscal year totals more than $712 million dollars – and public protection is the top spending priority. As the chart above shows, more than half of the city’s general fund spending is for public safety. This includes Louisville Metro Police, Louisville Division of Fire, EMS, Metro Corrections and more.
The spending plan has two distinct parts: the operating budget and the capital budget.
The operating budget – a total of more than $682 million for 2011-12 funds all city programs and services. It pays salaries and benefits for all city workers, and covers regular supplies like gas for the many hundreds of city vehicles. Think of the operating budget as the part of your household budget that pays for groceries and utility bills.
The capital budget – about $30 million for 2011-12 provides money for major investments such as playgrounds and spray parks, sidewalks, streets and bike lanes. It also covers major maintenance of roofs, furnaces and other basic physical needs. In your home, the capital budget would be money you set aside to replace your roof and buy a new car. It relies on yearly funding in some cases, and some major projects rely on bond issues. Louisville’s sound financial practices have earned us excellent credit ratings from bond companies so we can borrow money at favorable rates that save taxpayers money.
For a detailed view of city spending, and other parts of the current-year budget, click here.
To view budgets from past years, click on any of the links below.