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Highlights from the Proposed 2018 City Budget

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The Mayor of Pittsburgh submitted the 2018 operating and capital budgets and five year forecast to the Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority (oversight board) on Friday to comply with the requirements of Act 11 of 2004 on the board’s review of the budget.

The biggest news on the revenue side is that there are no tax increases proposed for 2018, including for the deed transfer tax.  This tax is levied by the City, the state, and the school district on real estate transactions and there was legislation proposed to increase the City’s share by 1 percentage point to fund an affordable housing fund.

On the expense side, specifically on legacy costs (such as pensions and debt service) the 2018 budget reflects an increase in pension funding (under the Department of Finance, there are two line items for Citywide employee benefits, the pension contribution and the additional pension fund) from $70.4 million to $86.4 million.  That accounts for nearly all of the increase of $16.3 million in the five year financial forecast’s expense category of Pensions and OPEB (other post-employment benefits).  Debt service is projected to fall $12.5 million.  Debt service as a percentage of expenditures will stand at 13%, lower than this year’s 16%.

Overall, the proposed budget expects total revenues of $560 million and total expenditures of $554 million.

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Allegheny Institute
Allegheny Institute

The Allegheny Institute is a non-profit research and education organization. Our mission is to defend the interests of taxpayers, citizens and businesses against an increasingly burdensome and intrusive government.

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