CULLMAN, Ala. – The Cullman City Council on Monday evening approved its fiscal year 2022 budget totalling $182,221,169 in projected expenses with equivalent revenues. The grand total almost doubled last year’s grand total of $93,833,075. The largest single operating fund, the General Fund, totaled $48,338,554, a 26% increase over last year.
The new budget includes increases in pay and benefits for all city employees.
The budget was broken down into multiple funds including:
General Fund Budget – $48,338,554
Property and Sales Tax Fund – $8,630,000
Miscellaneous and Special Fund Budgets
Rebuild Alabama Gas Tax Fund – $245,000
Four Cent Gas Tax Fund – $214,700
Seven Cent Gas Tax Fund – $384,000
Industrial Purpose Fund – $164,000
Lodging Tax Fund – $1,270,000
Industrial Purpose Fund – $92,000
Alabama Trust Fund – $450,000
Corrections and Court Fund – $71,000
Court Judicial Fund – $44,000
Industrial Park Fund – $63,500
Industrial Access Road Fund – $35,000
Cullman Building Account – $5,000
Parks and Recreation Construction Fund – $37,470,000
Transportation Enhancement – $75,000
Downtown Revitalization Fund – $1,200,000
CDBG Neighborhood Projects – $1,350,000
Debt Service Funds – $35,196,789
Sewer Fund – $8,203,000
Water Fund – $20,142,400
Utilities Board Water Division – $12,286,800
Airport Fund – $1,234,426
Parks and Recreation Fund – $5,220,000
Budget highlights include:
General Fund increased to $48,338,554 which is based on the actual revenue collected in 2021. The General Fund budget increased 26% compared to last year ($38,378,448) due to capital and inflation.
Employee Pay
- Developed new and separate Pay Plans for General, Police, Fire and Dispatch.
- All City workers will receive at least a 4% Cost of Living Adjustment.
- Starting pay for all positions increased by approximately $2 per hour.
- Annual Pay Supplement of $800 for full-time employees in November.
- Hour per hour holiday pay for 10 paid holidays (8hrs, 12hrs, and 24hrs).
Employee Benefits
- City absorbed annual increases to health, dental and life insurance for city employees.
- City renewed Air Evac plan for employees and their family.
- CWAC for city employees and provide a discount for their families.
- City negotiated a new benefit package with Aflac.
- Continue to provide cancer insurance for fire.
Cullman City Schools
- Capital Improvement Plan – $600,000.
- Local Property and Sales Tax – $8,630,000.
Administration
- Add Drive Through, Update Bathrooms and Exterior at City Hall – $600,000.
Risk Management
- New Safety Vests for City Employees – $5,000.
Maintenance
- Improvements to large metal building at Greif – $100,000.
Information Technology
- IT equipment – $299,000.
Economic Development
- Land for Industrial purposes – $700,000.
- New industrial park signs – $62,500.
Human Resources
- New HR software – $23,000.
Building
- New inspection software – $35,000.
- Improvements to exterior – $50,000.
Public Works Committee
- Garage – New fleet management software – $16,500.
- Paving budget – $2,253,700.
- Second Avenue streetscape – $1,200,000 TAP grant.
- Warnke Road CDBG Neighborhood Project – $1,350,000 CDBG grant.
- Backhoe – $145,000.
- Crew truck – $115,000.
Traffic
- Large storage building with offices for traffic – $200,000.
- New bucket truck – $150,000.
- TMC Program – $125,000.
- Traffic signal – $118,700.
- Pre-emption AI units – $75,000.
Sanitation
- Cardboard recycling center – $200,000.
Public Safety Committee
- Municipal Court – Restructured pay for municipal court.
Police
- New pay structure for police.
- 7 new fleet vehicles – $245,000.
- Other equipment – $198,900.
City Central Dispatch
- New pay structure for Telecommunicator First Responders.
- Uniforms for Telecommunicator First Responders.
Fire
- New pay structure for Fire.
- Moving to a 26-day cycle from the current 28-day cycle.
Tourism Committee
- Museum – new displays – $27,500.
Parks and Recreation
- Civic Center Complex with Emergency Pandemic Response Center – American Rescue Act.
- Wild Water Waterpark with parking area.
- Burrow Trails & Palomino RV Park Expansion partially funded by Trails Grant.
- Nesmith Park LED lighting – $500,000.
- Skate park – $300,000.
- Gymnastics center – $250,000.
- CWAC new interior paint and flooring for foyer and halls – $150,000.
- Heritage Park bathrooms and paving walking trails/parking lot – $75,000.
Airport
- Airport Runway rehabilitation – $4,000,000 funded by FAA.
- Airport General Aviation apron – $3,750,000 if funded by FAA.
- Airport taxiway – $500,000 if funded by FAA.
Utilities Committee
- ROW – Two 4WD tractors with flail mowers – $400,000.
Sewer
- Excavator – $134,000.
- Lateral Launch System – $161,000.
Wastewater Treatment Plant
- Restructure Pay Plan for WWTP operators.
- UV equipment – $54,000.
- Clarifier drive and gearbox – $51,000.
- New sludge pump – $21,000.
- Scada upgrade – $17,000.
- Blower for headworks – $16,000.
- Filter media – $13,000.
- Water – Triaxle dump truck – $249,002.
- UB Water – Pay increase for employees.
The budget allows for the transfer of money between funds as needs arise.
911 operators reclassified
The council passed a resolution to reclassify emergency telecommunications staff as first responders, the resolution saying that the City “recognizes Public Safety Telecommunicators are far more than clerical and supports the national movement to reclassify telecommunications as first responders and accurately recognize the scope of the work they do. Additionally, the City of Cullman supports the 911 Saves Act to properly classify the profession of 911/Public Safety Telecommunicators. The Public Safety Telecommunicators shall hereby be designated as First Responders in all policy and procedural considerations in the City of Cullman.”
Community Service Contractors named
The council approved a list of contractors with whom the City might negotiate contracts for community services, including:
- American Legion Post No. 4 of Cullman
- Child Advocacy Center of Cullman
- Childhaven
- Cullman 310 Authority
- Cullman Agriplex
- Cullman Area Mental Health (Wellstone)
- Cullman Caring for Kids
- Cullman Area Chamber of Commerce
- Cullman City Board of Education
- Cullman Community Band
- Cullman Community Theater
- Cullman County Commission on Aging
- Cullman County Emergency Management Agency
- Cullman County Extension Service
- Cullman County Health Department
- Cullman County Historical Society
- Cullman County Public Library
- Cullman County Soil and Water Conservation
- Cullman Farmers Market Steering Committee
- Cullman Regional Medical Center
- First Source for Women of Cullman County
- Good Samaritan Clinic
- Hope Horses
- Pilot Light of Cullman County
- The Link of Cullman County
- United Way of Cullman County
- Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 2214 of Cullman
- Victim Services of Cullman
In order to receive contracts, the agencies must provide certain financial and insurance information to the City.
The Cullman City Council meets at 7:00 p.m. on the second and fourth Mondays of each month in the City Hall auditorium. The public is invited to attend.
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