Staffers apologize for budget errors

Brainerd city staffers apologized Monday for errors made in calculating Brainerd's 2008 tax rate.

At Monday's Brainerd City Council meeting, City Administrator Dan Vogt reiterated statements made by Finance Director Theresa Goble in a Sept. 27 memo that were reported in the Dispatch: that she gave the council the wrong estimated tax rate and levy information at the council's Aug. 27 workshop.

The council earlier set a preliminary levy at $3,982,796, which they believed, based on Goble's information, resulted in a 44 percent tax rate. In her Sept. 27 memo, Goble said that tax levy would actually amount to a 46 percent tax rate.

Vogt said Goble caught her error while answering questions from council member Bob Olson, who earlier stated the numbers were incorrect.

"Not only to the full mayor and council members, I'd like to apologize to the public as well for any embarrassment that may have caused," Vogt said.

Goble was unable to attend Monday's council meeting because family issues, Vogt said.

In order to have a tax rate of 44 percent a reduction of $348,526 will need to be made to the 2008 budget, Goble wrote in her memo. Vogt said department heads would be meeting to make further cuts in order to meet that figure and would be presenting them to the council at its Oct. 22 budget workshop.

Olson previously had been accused of using simple math to make his own calculations in showing the finance department's 2008 tax rate and levy figures were incorrect. At the Sept. 17 council meeting, Mayor James Wallin said Olson should publicly apologize for accusing city staffers of incorrectly calculating the city's tax rate and levy. It was later shown that though not exact, Olson's numbers were closer than Goble's.

Reading from a prepared statement, Olson said contrary to previous information provided by Vogt, the increase in the 2008 tax rate will be almost double over 2007. He questioned why city staffers and elected officials didn't compare the information he provided to the information provided by Vogt.

"Instead, politics were involved and, I do feel this, it was an effort to try and ruin my reputation, my credibility and to try to label me as a troublemaker," Olson said.

He said he arrived at his numbers using information provided by Vogt's office. He also said the corrected spreadsheet still contains incomplete and inaccurate information concerning the tax rate and tax levies; and there were discrepancies and possible errors in the construction and arena funds that have not been addressed. He asked that the issues be placed on the council's Oct. 15 agenda for discussion.

In regard to Wallin's Sept. 17 statement, Olson said he never called Vogt a liar.

"This malicious, untrue, unbecoming statement is a disgrace to the office that Mr. Wallin occupies," Olson said. "To make statements like that, it's just out of line, terribly out of line."

Though Council President Kelly Bevans asked if Wallin really did want to respond, Wallin reiterated Monday's character trait, self control, that was present earlier in the meeting. Wallin quoted the section that stated "being careful to speak words that would only encourage and not tear down one another, even when irritated."

There were no other council comments on the issue.

MATT ERICKSON may be reached at matt.erickson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5857.