(The Center Square) — The 2025 Shreveport budget that was approved this week has a focus on improving the streets and addressing blight throughout the city.
The 2025 operating budget approved by the city council on Tuesday is expected to equal $689 million, an increase of about 6% from 2024. The proposed capital improvements budget is $1.46 billion with approximately $36 million in new projects.
Those new projects highlight Mayor Tom Arceneaux’s budget message.
These were made possible in April after the city received overwhelming approval from its citizens on three bond issue proposals that will allow the city to invest more than $250 million into streets, water and sewer facilities, parks, and public buildings that will finish over the next couple of years.
The first $88 million of those bonds are expected to be sold soon, with the first projects beginning construction before next summer.
Shreveport officials hoping these types of projects will bring business and jobs back to Shreveport after a down year in 2024 that saw a lag in sales tax collections. Sales tax makes up two-thirds of the general fund revenues.
In order to continue these projects in spite of the economic downturn, the 2025 spending is expected to exceed revenue by $7 million.
This is only possible because the city started 2024 about $7 million up and broke even this past year. There is expected to be a 2.5% sales tax increase in 2025, but if it continues its trend from 2024, then the city will have to make more difficult spending decisions.
The unfortunate truth of the budget is that, with spending increasing for construction and revenue not guaranteed to increase, some other outlays had to be reduced.
Arceneaux says the budget proposal does not adequately fund the recruitment and retention incentives implemented in 2024 for public safety positions.
There was a 2% increase in fire and police employee salaries, but only because it’s required by state law. Arceneaux feels that their pay is still not adequate enough to continue to improve public safety problems in Shreveport.
The budget also does not allow for any significant purchases of vehicles for either the fire or police department. Additionally, the new police headquarters that have been planned for some time is going to need to find money elsewhere in order to finish on time.
These issues are shown monetarily in the budget overview, with fire decreasing 2% and police increasing 3%.
The only reason the budget for police increased is because, as of mid-2024, the city now pays state supplemental pay directly to officers, instead of the state paying them separately.
This allowed for almost $3 million in state funds to be included in the police budget for that purpose. The mayor would have liked to see more considering the situation.
Although the water and sewer budget is balanced, doing so required that the city reduce about $5 million in expenses that are needed to continue to maintain the system. This includes money for on-demand repair contractors and equipment necessary.