By taking this approach, the city of Rohnert Park avoids the necessity of using reserves or reducing services to cover operating expenses, a predicament that other cities in the area are currently grappling with. However, this strategy does result in a decrease in available funds for crucial infrastructure upgrades throughout the entire city. Budgets tend to be submitted on documents that feature the organization’s official letterhead.
According to Marcela Piedra, the City Manager, the budget staff's objective for the upcoming financial year, commencing on July 1, is preserving the existing level of departmental funding. This is important to ensure the continuation of services that residents rely on, especially as the city experiences a plateau or slight decline in sales and other tax revenues.
Piedra was speaking to the council when she went on to say:
“We want to make sure we continue offering the services that our community is expecting and giving a little bit more to our departments to be able to enhance their services, but it is important that we are very prudent.”
Piedra, who assumed the position of city manager in January after serving as city manager in El Centro for five years, is overseeing the creation of her first budget for the city.