City UB makes 13% cut in budget

Published 11:59 pm Thursday, September 24, 2009

The Andalusia Utilities Board this week adopted a budget in which it projected about 13 percent less revenue and expenses than in last year’s budget.

The budget projects $32.2 million dollars in revenue, compared to the $36.5 million it expected to generate in the current fiscal year that ends next week. Through the first 10 months of the fiscal year (83 percent of the year) for which financials were available, the Utilities Board showed income of $25.3 million, or 69 percent of the total it expected to receive.

Mayor Earl Johnson said that it would be impossible to project the year-end total revenue based on averages, but he thinks it will be $32 million, about 13 percent less than projected.

“Traditionally, these are some of our hottest months and the use of electricity is high,” he said. “Systems are down (in sales) all across the United States based on the mild summer and mild winter we’ve enjoyed.”

He said the budget reflects significant cuts in expenses, with respect to salaries in the administrative office and legal fees. When the board’s manager resigned earlier this year, he was not replaced. Instead, the mayor, who chairs the Utilities Board, acts as manager.

The new budget shows a reduction in administrative salaries of $117,535, and a reduction in legal expenses of $14,200.