Page 111 - FY 2023-24 ADOPTED BUDGET
P. 111

Transfers


        No transfers of funds into the General Fund are reflected in the Long-Range Financial Forecast.  It is the prerogative
        of the City Council to determine if and when transfers are made in future years.  Transfers are included for the Debt
        Service Fund from the Stormwater Utility Fund for the payment of debt service principal and interest related to
        drainage projects.

        EXPENDITURE ASSUMPTIONS

        The methodology for determining the level of expenditures throughout the forecast period is basically the same for
        all operating funds.  Expenditure estimates are developed for each department based on current service levels,
        with increases due to inflationary pressures only.  All non-recurring capital spending is removed from the forecast
        and projected using expert judgment.  The only recurring capital outlay reflected in the forecast is the replacement
        of Police patrol vehicles each year in the General Fund.


        Population Projections

        The population projections, based on the 2020 Census counts and data from the North Central Texas Council of
        Governments,  used  for  both  revenue  and  expenditure  projections  in  the  Long-Range  Financial  Forecast  are
        provided below:

                                            2022-23…………………….25,319

                                            2023-24…………………….25,416

                                            2024-25…………………….25,594
                                            2025-26…………………….25,773

                                            2026-27…………………….25,950


        GENERAL FUND

        As previously stated, one of the methods used to project operating expenditures is to develop separate inflation
        rates for a variety of line item expenditures.  The inflation rate is then applied to the projected expenditures.  The
        flaw in this approach to forecasting is that expenditures are often forecast before they occur and consequently the
        ending fund balances may be artificially reduced.  The City applies a second expenditure forecasting method of
        using per capita expenditures applied to the projected population estimates.  The major drawback to this approach

        is using past trends, that may or may not be reliable, to predict the future.  This methodology does produce
        relatively consistent computations, in that the City's per capita spending has remained constant over the past ten
        years.  When either of these two methods does produce numbers that are inconsistent with the forecast, the City
        Staff uses expert judgment to establish projected expenditure levels.

        The forecast is predicated on the following expenditure assumptions for the General Fund:
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