Proposed 2018 Budget Presented To Pinellas Board

CLEARWATER, FL – County staff presented the Pinellas Board of County Commissioners the proposed Fiscal Year 2018 budget during the board’s regular meeting on Tuesday, July 18.

The proposed overall budget for 2018 came in a little more than $2.2 billion. The budget includes all Pinellas County Commission government and enterprise services, constitutional officers and other services, including fire districts and court support.

The total proposed budget increases $77.1 million, or 3.5 percent, over the total Fiscal Year 2017 budget, reflecting a net increase in personal services, capital and reserves. The budget includes no millage rate increases to provide a balanced budget, according to a Pinellas County press release.

During the budget process, the Pinellas County board hosted a series of public meetings and events, including the Community Conversation that took place in June. The board will host additional budget sessions and public hearings over the next two months in preparation for adoption of the Fiscal Year 2018 budget and property tax rates on Tuesday, Sept. 26.

The 2018 fiscal year begins Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. Residents can review the proposed budget online at www.pinellascounty.org/budget.

Pinellas receives award for 2017 budget

During Tuesday’s meeting, Pinellas County also received a national award for its Fiscal Year 2017 budget proposal.

Commission Chair Janet C. Long presented the county’s Office of Management and Budget with the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award from the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada.

This is the 13th straight year Pinellas County has earned the award.

The award is given to budget offices that fulfill nationally-recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation. The guidelines assess how well a budget serves as a policy document, an operations guide, a financial plan and a piece of communication.

The GFOA created the Distinguished Budget Presentation Awards program in 1984 to encourage and assist state and local governments to prepare budget documents that reflect both the guidelines established by the National Advisory Council on State and Local Budgeting and the GFOA’s best practices on budgeting.

Document submitted to the Budget Awards Program are reviewed by members of the GOFA staff and by outside reviewers with experience in public-sector budgeting.

Photography provided courtesy of Pinellas County Marketing and Communications Department