New Prague city councilors met in a special meeting Monday, June 8, to discuss a challenging question – how to handle the city’s budget today and in the future and begin to discuss the long-term plan for how to bridge the gap between that the city and its residents want and what they are willing to pay for.
We heard Josh Tetzlaff, New Prague’s city administrator, remind the city council, controlling the growth of New Prague’s operating budget is both doable and sometimes difficult. New Prague’s general fund budget for 2026, including transfers in and out, is about $7.37 million. Robin Pikal, the city’s finance director, said just under half of that budget is the wages and benefits staff earn providing services to residents. To significantly reduce that number would require a reduction in the number of staff providing services.
Tetzlaff told the council the city could cut the level of services it offers to residents, but that might mean grass in parks grows a little longer between cuttings or cleaning streets is done less often. From a budget perspective, the largest department in the city is the New Prague Police Department. It utilizes just over 34% of the city’s budget. It would be a possible source of budget reductions – does NP really need multiple officers on duty 24-7? If the school district can increase class sizes, even slightly, can NP look for ways to address the spending of its most costly department?
Understandably, for many people, public safety is a hands-off area for budget reductions. We get that. People call 911 and want an officer in the driveway not long after hanging up the phone. NP police officers provide a high level of professional law-enforcement services to residents. But it’s a service performed at a cost.
So where should the city look to reduce expenses with the intent of reducing the city’s share of the property tax liability residents face – streets, building inspections, the city’s share of the aquatics center, parks, the city’s share of the municipal library, operating a municipal golf course? No matter where councilors look to cut, somebody won’t like it. It seems the key is to find reducing expenses impacting the fewest number of people and look for a less-expensive way to mitigate the reduction.
That sounds easy, doesn’t it? It’s not. If you think so, feel free to plop down $5 and run for city council.
Council members are often criticized how they spend taxpayers’ money. The new police station is the current popular target of the tax sensitive New Prague taxpayer. Sure, the city bonded just over $10 million to expand the fire station. The city hopes the expansion will cost far less, with the difference put back into repaying the bond.
Had the city approved the needed expansion project when it was first raised years ago, the cost would have been less. The difference is the cost of waiting.
Now, the city has purchased a former church building for $1.7 million to utilize as a new city hall rather than build from scratch. The city plans to spend up to an additional $647,450 (including a 15% contingency) to renovate the former New Day Church. The needs of the aging existing city hall, built in 1939, are nothing new and have been discussed for years. Maintenance costs alone are estimated at $1.2 million. The city deserves credit for trying to meet its facilities needs while being sensitive to the impact upon taxpayers.
Had most people seen a more modest increase in the city’s share of their property taxes, taxpayers might be in a better mood these days. But in New Prague’s plan, the value of residential property increased by 2.76% locally and 4.32% countywide. As Michael Thompson, Scott County’s assessor put it earlier this year, “if your property value increases faster than most others, your share of the overall tax burden could increase. If it rises slower than others, your share could decrease. So the important factor isn't just that a value changed, but how that change compares to the rest of the market.”