The budget picture in Harahan is not all gloom and doom. A handful of revenue streams has surged past the conservative estimates of city officials, especially video poker receipts, which are up 84 percent so far this year compared with the same time last year. Harahan collected $169,103 in video poker revenue in 2009, Mayor Paul Johnston said. So...
The budget picture in Harahan is not all gloom and doom.
A handful of revenue streams has surged past the conservative estimates of city officials, especially video poker receipts, which are up 84 percent so far this year compared with the same time last year.
Harahan collected $169,103 in video poker revenue in 2009, Mayor Paul Johnston said. So far this year, the city has already taken in $167,387, he said.
City officials continue to attribute the climb in revenue to the Elmwood Oasis Truck Stop and the 32-machine mini-casino that opened in October 2008. Johnston earlier this year predicted the city would see a $100,000 increase in video poker revenue, which is dedicated to capital projects.
"I think we're still on track," he said Friday.
The city also also projecting increases in a few other revenue streams. Johnston said the city has so far received an extra $20,000 in real estate taxes this year. Fees for occupational licenses and inspections are up, as are franchise fees paid by Cox Communications and court fines.
Sales tax revenue had been the city's chief worry in 2010, so much so that officials slashed this year's overall budget by 10 percent. Sales tax numbers have not surged, but they are down only about 4 percent, Johnston said.
The better-than-expected revenue prompted the City Council last week to amend the 2010 budget and add $290,000. Most of the additional money will pay for the rising retirement and insurances costs for the Police and Ffire departments, said Johnston, who expects those bills to continue to rise during the next year.
Johnston said he still thinks the city could finish the year short on revenue, but he felt positive about the increases the city has seen.
"It's a little better," he said. "It helps. With the video poker money, we can do more capital projects, and we don't have to take it out of the operating budget. It all helps."
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Michelle Hunter can be reached at mhunter@timespicayune.com or 504.883.7054.