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<br />e the services listed by Mayor Obie are the services currently financed by the <br /> General Fund. He said the City of Springfield is sharply cutting back to <br /> basic service levels. He felt the City of Eugene should consider what is in <br /> the General Fund at the same basic level. <br /> Mr. Holmer said one of the concerns he has about the General Fund is the <br /> sources from which it is now developed, such as franchise fees and admission <br /> fees. He felt this should influence the way in which the council identifies <br /> basic services. The General Fund should be used to finance operations that <br /> help the City fulfill its fundamental role. <br /> Mayor Obie feels the City relies greatly on productivity and is effective at <br /> what it does. Mr. Bennett said this is one reason he does not feel the <br /> council should get into a line-item budget approach. He said the councilors <br /> should not get into a discussion regarding how much contract help a certain <br /> department should have. Mr. Bennett said he was prepared to adopt the City <br /> Manager's general premise and approach to the mission statement of the <br /> General Fund. <br /> Mr. Miller felt Mr. Bennett was saying that he does not want to prioritize <br /> the services that should be included in the General Fund and he does not want <br /> .to use a line-item approach. Mr. Miller felt this would be avoiding the <br /> council's responsibility. He said he is not yet willing to commit to the <br /> City Manager's suggested prioritizations for the General Fund. <br /> Mayor Obie said he would segregate funds by service systems, instituting a <br />e no-loss/no-gain relationship for those services the council considers <br /> critical. He added that there should be no additions to service without <br /> revenue outside of the General Fund contribution. Mr. Obie said this would <br /> still leave the $1 million deficit, but said under this scenario the council <br /> would be able to focus on a solution. He said the council would not be able <br /> to draw from the General Fund for additional money. <br /> Mr. Gleason said one purpose of the General Fund is for the City to have <br /> corporate capacity to make decisions. He said the more service systems <br /> become segregated, the more difficult it is for the organization to operate <br /> as an entity. He felt if the council could decide on a level of basic <br /> welfare for the community in several key services, and set policies <br /> reflecting this level, then the appropriate source of contribution could be <br /> assessed for services on a case-by-case basis. <br /> Mr. Gleason said if the City Council adopts a mission statement giving him <br /> specific direction regarding what should be supported by the General Fund, <br /> and adopts a series of statements to reflect the service expectations for <br /> those items, he will prepare a preliminary budget proposal. Mr. Gleason said <br /> he hopes to be able to achieve a balanced budget by reducing the number of <br /> services dependent on financing from the General Fund through the transfer of <br /> services, mitigating costs through user fees, and reducing services. <br />e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 20, 1988 Page 4 <br />