The City of Bismarck’s share of the property tax rates will remain stable following the Bismarck City Commission’s approval of the city’s preliminary 2024 budget earlier this week.
The Bismarck City Commission unanimously approved the balanced 2024 preliminary budget at its regular July 25 commission meeting. The overall budget presently stands at just over $346 million, with the city’s general fund accounting for $66.7 million and property taxes providing $32.8 million. Property taxes are dedicated to the critical mission of public safety, but this cost traditionally exceeds the property tax assessment.
If the preliminary budget were not to change, the general fund budget would be at $66.7 million:
- Public safety functions of police, fire and the 911 emergency call system: $37.7 million (56 percent)
- General government functions of legal, administration, human resources, engineering and community development: $18.1 million (27 percent)
- Street repair and snow removal: $7.6 million (11 percent)
- Public Health: $3.3 million (5 percent)
The city’s general fund is funded through property taxes, a sales tax subsidy of $9.8 million, and the remainder is funded by fees. The City of Bismarck’s preliminary property tax revenue is about $32.8 million and based on 2023 numbers, the city’s share has been about 30 percent of the community’s overall real estate taxes collected. Other taxing entity allocations include Bismarck Public Schools (about 42 percent), Burleigh County and the State (about 15 percent) and the Bismarck Parks and Recreation District (13 percent).
“Going into budget season, my main goal was not to raise property tax rates, while still providing services for our citizens with a balanced budget,” said Bismarck City Commissioner Steve Marquardt, who serves as the City’s finance portfolio holder and chair of the budget committee. “There are a lot of needs in our city, and we strive to find a balance so that we are reactive to those needs, while still being responsible with our citizens’ tax dollars.”
Part of what helped create this balanced budget is the work of local legislators, who helped secure funding in the last legislative session and a portion of the remaining American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. Prairie Dog funding, which was designated through House Bill 1066, infrastructure funding through Senate Bill 2020, and federal funding through ARPA funding provides nearly $70 million for various projects.
“The City of Bismarck needs to be innovative when it comes to funding sources,” said Bismarck Mayor Mike Schmitz. “We can’t just expect that our citizens will be able to take on the burden of funding some of these large projects. We need to continue to work with our partners at the local, state and federal levels to secure the funding that will ensure we are building a better Bismarck.”
Another way Bismack has accessed funding for some of the upcoming infrastructure improvements is by decreasing its reserve threshold. Lowering this threshold allows the city to access funds that would otherwise be untouchable. Following the change to the threshold, the City of Bismarck still maintains a 40 percent reserve based on expenses, a decrease of 20 percent. This 40 percent reserve would provide about three months of funding in the event of a large-scale emergency that would shut down the city.
Dmitriy Chernyak, the City of Bismarck’s Finance Director said that about $2.2 million of the 2024 budget was due to inflationary adjustments.
“I think the key takeaway with this year’s budget is Commissioner Marquardt and the budget committee worked diligently to provide a balanced budget that will not raise property tax rates,” said Chernyak. “There were a number of exterior pressures this year: we were hit with significant inflation, we dealt with an unusually large amount of snow removal, and preparing for some large projects on the horizon. This budget provides us with the means to continue providing services to our citizens and to be nimble if unexpected costs arise.”
The budget committee received requests for 22 full-time employees and approved seven. These positions are primarily public safety positions:
- 2 Firefighters that will eventually transition to the fire station expected to be built in Northeast Bismarck in the coming years.
- 2 Heavy Equipment Operators for the Roads and Streets Division.
- 1 School Resource Officer position that will be half-funded by Shiloh Christian School.
- 1 Forestry Technician that can split time with Roads and Streets when necessary.
- 1 Health Communications Specialist for Bismarck-Burleigh Public Health (position is 100-percent grant funded).
A variety of other projects are included in the 2024 preliminary budget:
- Snow removal equipment was added.
- Fleet turnover based on the criteria established by the City’s equipment replacement program will continue.
- A fire station alerting system will be purchased to help streamline fire responses by impacted firehouses.
- Tasers will be purchased that work in conjunction with the police body cams purchased in 2023.
- Equipment to help mitigate Emerald Ash Borer-related damage will be purchased.
- Staff salaries are expected to increase by an overall 6 percent to meet current market pay scales and measures will be taken to help combat salary compression.
The next steps in the budget process include the public hearing that accompanies each budget cycle and the final budget approval that is scheduled for September 12. Additional information about past city budgets is available online at the City of Bismarck's Budget page.