Councilors to Get Down to Business

Portsmouth residents will have their first opportunity to learn more about the city's proposed $93,223,137 fiscal year 2014 budget when the City Council holds a work session on Saturday.

According to City Manager John Bohenko, councilors will meet at City Hall on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and review the proposed municipal operating budget along with the proposed police, fire and school budgets.

Bohenko said the work session will be live streamed on YouTube and later rebroadcast on the Channel 22, the city's public access cable television network. The goal is to give councilors an opportunity to review the various issues with the proposed spending package before the city holds the subsequent budget public hearings. The full budget public hearing schedule can be viewed on the city's website.

Bohenko previously said the council wants to make sure that when public hearings are held, all residents who want to speak to the budget will be able to voice their concerns. By holding the budget work session on Saturday, councilors will be able to express their concerns first before the public hearings.

According to Bohenko, the proposed budget includes an additional $1,256,903 for retirement system benefits for police officers, firefighters, teachers and other municipal employees after the state reduced retirement system subsidies paid to cities and towns.

The proposed budget is up $2,666,869 over this year's budget. The city's proposed operating budget of $73,216,323 represents a 3.92 percent increase.

from $17.55 per one thousand dollars of assessed valuation to $18 per one thousand dollars of assessed valuation.