Mayor Mitch Roth has submitted his proposed $888 million operating budget to the Hawaiʻi County Council for the next fiscal year.
The mayor’s budget is up 6.6% from last year. It says $30.5 million of that bump would go to salary increases for employees.
“The increases in expenditures are primarily attributable to established collective bargaining agreements, anticipated increases in consumption of fuel and utility services, rising insurance premiums, and additional supplies and equipment necessary to support increasing demands for county services,” the submitted budget said.
Rothʻs administration says the budget is balanced, because the countyʻs revenue has also grown.
All the county’s revenue sources have grown since last year, led by real property taxes and government grants. Property taxes collected by the county grew by more than $23 million, and revenue from government grants increased by more than $20 million.
The county is asking for more than $53 million for its Office of Housing Fund, up about $9 million from last year. During his State of the County address last month, Roth placed emphasis on affordable housing for residents. His budget includes $11 million for homeless services, too.
Roth’s budget includes an increase of $8.4 million in mass transit expenditures for contracted services and equipment, $1.6 million for fire-related equipment and personnel, and at least $1 million each for repairs and upgrades to parks, animal control officers and cybersecurity infrastructure.
Roth has also submitted a capital improvement budget of nearly $392.3 million. It includes nearly 60 projects.
