Christmas came early for a handful of local organizations in the tune of just over $1 million.
The Sedona City Council unanimously approved service contracts for the Humane Society of Sedona, Sedona Community Center, Sedona Public Library, Sedona Recycles and Verde Valley Caregivers during its meeting Tuesday, April 13.
According to a report and presentation by Megan McRae, assistant to the city manager, various community organizations have received funding from the city through provider agreements for more than 20 years.
These organizations fund services the city does not provide but might otherwise provide in the absence of that community organization, and others are simply intended to provide additional public benefit.
In the customary service provider agreement renewal process, council would have approved or adjusted recommended amounts during budget work sessions. Next, the providers would have executed three-year provider agreements with inflationary increases tied to the consumer price index added in years two and three.
But then came COVID-19.
During the Fiscal Year 2020-21 budget process, considering expected tax revenue drops due to the pandemic, council asked each of the service providers to consider what levels of funding they could accept for one year in response to anticipated city revenue losses.
All five of the service providers agreed to one-year agreements last year at reduced amounts, which totaled nearly $64,000.
The report goes on to state that in preparation for the Fiscal Year 2021-22 budget cycle, staff met with each of the service providers to discuss extending the agreements for two years at the amounts originally recommended by the review committee, rather than require another full funding request submission and committee review given that process was completed last year.
During these meetings, one service provider proposed consideration of including a one-time payment to increase the FY 2021- 22 amount to equal the original committee recommendation.
“Because the city did not experience revenue losses as anticipated during the FY 2021-22 budget cycle and instead has experienced robust recovery, staff is recommending City Council consider including one-time payments for all five of the service providers,” the report states. “A budget transfer of $62,816 from the contingency account will be needed to cover this additional cost.”
With this adjusted amount, the total for each organization for next year is as follows:
■ Humane Society of Sedona: $71,919
■ Sedona Community Center: $192,850
■ Sedona Public Library: $506,031
■ Sedona Recycles: $203,000
■ Verde Valley Caregivers: $60,900
“I want to thank these organizations because Sedona would not have the reputation it has and be able to provide the services that it does without partnering with all of these organizations,” Councilwoman Kathy Kinsella said.
