By Katie Knapp Schubert
Omaha, NE – Omaha finished the 2010 fiscal year with a $3.3 million surplus, according to City officials.
Mayor Jim Suttle and City Finance Director Pam Spaccarotella announced Thursday that a combination of hiring freezes, lower health care costs and attrition resulted in a surplus. Spaccarotella says 218 positions, mostly in the Police and Fire Departments, were left unfilled. Health care costs decreased, and the Omaha Fire Department budget finished in the black.
There's also the restaurant tax. The 2.5 percent tax was implemented in October. City officials say it generated $4.2 million in revenue for the City between then and the end of the year.
Mayor Suttle says he'd like the surplus to be put in the city's cash reserve. It could also be used to cover the loss of state aid to cities should that legislation pass in the Nebraska Legislature. Governor Dave Heineman announced during his State of the State address that state aid for cities and counties would be eliminated.