This week’s City Council meeting begins with the second public hearing on the proposed Fiscal Year 2022 budget (with adjustments made since the first hearing). We are also receiving the full school budget proposal for the upcoming year; the School Committee just approved it on Thursday. There is a significant difference in how the City has proposed to fund the School Department (a 1% increase) vs. what the School Department is asking for (a 4% increase). Before I vote on the budget, I need to understand the potential impacts of funding the School Department at a lower rate than proposed and whether or not those impacts can be absorbed. We are still feeling the effects of COVID-19, and the City has not fully recovered financially; we need to make these budget decisions thoughtfully and with as much information as possible.
This discussion also brings to the forefront the need to make changes to our tax system that would allow the City to tax part-time residences at a higher tax rate than year-round residences. This additional revenue would allow the City the budget flexibility and stability it needs to maintain the resources our full and part time residents enjoy and invest in our future generations. Our schools were not adequately funded for years, and we are still making up that deficit – so understandably, there is some concern within the School Department that could happen again. Once this year’s budget is passed, I plan to bring this conversation up again and get the ball rolling.
This week’s docket also includes the resolution on bike lanes that was continued from the May 12 meeting. The resolution has been changed since the last meeting - please reach out with your thoughts on the changes. This resolution was spurred on by the State’s Bicycle Mobility Plan (BMP), which addresses bicycle infrastructure, accessibility, and operations across Rhode Island. The BMP includes several recommended routes and potential bike lanes across Newport. We are instructing the City to use the BMP, along with the Comprehensive Land Use Plan and the eventual Transportation Master Plan, as a guiding document for Newport’s bike transit needs.