I tuned in after the meeting had commenced.  Councilors are questioning Police Chief Taylor now.  Councilors seem to concur that the proposed budget is a responsible one that is has no fat in it and therefore has nothing that demands to be cut.  They observe that much of the items that have gone up are mandates over which the city has no control.  Things under the city’s control are mostly level funded (or at least provide for level services).  They say there is no reasonable alternative but to increase the taxes by 1.5%.  Other councilors commend the manager and his team for having the budget prepared so early (councilors received a memo a month ago identifying the challenging issues in the budget.

Vote to approve FY16 budget of  $334 million:  Unanimously approved.

Council adjourns at 7:11 pm