The City of Lawrence’s administration has retained an Indianapolis-based municipal advisor since April to help the city’s controller with finances. The cost of those services is close to the threshold of what the administration can spend without approval from the Lawrence Common Council, and the mayor’s office has asked the council to extend that contract through the end of the year.
The council’s Committee of the Whole met Sept. 5 to review the proposal and forwarded a favorable recommendation for consideration at the next regular council meeting, set for Sept. 18.
Andre Riley of Baker Tilly LLC addressed the committee and said that while the previous contract called for billing on an as-needed basis, the contract extension would be set at $8,500 a month and sunsets Dec. 31. He estimated the total cost from April through December would be approximately $50,000.
In April, the council increased the dollar amount for contracts that need to come before the council for ratification to $50,000 or more. The threshold had been $5,000 for much of 2023, when there were tensions between the council and the previous administration.
Riley said his firm would continue to provide help with the city’s budget, including drafting the 2025 budget.
“There’s certain requirements to get an approved budget with the (Department of Local Government Finance),” he said. “Part of our role would be to make sure that everything is complied with.”
The upcoming year’s budget timeline, according to the DLGF, includes an Oct. 12 deadline to post a public notice of the 2025 proposed budget, tax levies and public hearing dates. The last day to hold a public hearing is Oct. 22 and a 2025 budget must be adopted by Nov. 1.
The city’s finances have been a topic of discussion for the past few council meetings, starting in early August when Controller Humphrey Nagila gave an update that indicated there was a deficit but didn’t provide specific numbers. He said he would come back with more details but so far there has been no clear information about how much of a deficit the city is facing in its 2024 budget.
During the council’s Aug. 5 meeting, Nagila told the council that city expenses had been higher than anticipated. Through June, the city had spent about 64 percent of its appropriated $27.4 million general fund. Expenses should have been closer to 50 percent at that time. The 14 percent in additional spending equals $3.8 million. However, Nagila said on Aug. 21 that appropriations needed to balance the 2024 budget should be less than $1 million. He still did not have exact numbers to share at that time and said he would provide details during the council’s Sept. 3 meeting. However, that presentation was postponed.
Riley said there would be more information for the council during its Sept. 18 meeting, which starts at 6:30 p.m. at Lawrence Government Center, 9001 E. 59th St. Meetings are livestreamed on the city’s Facebook page, facebook.com/cityoflawrencein; and its YouTube channel, youtube.com/@visitlawrenceindiana.
