MALIBU—The Malibu Council goes into its reserve fund to cover expenditures in the city’s budget. Public safety concerns account for most of the extra costs. Back in 1991, a similar concern rang among residents in Malibu, when a $6.6-million budget was proposed, leaving  $962,000 in their reserve fund for emergencies. Of course, at this time, most of the budget was for road repairs.

Now, former Mayor of Malibu Joan House, who was on the City Council from 1992 to 2004, disagrees on the decision made last week, on going into the city’s funds to cover the budget for the fiscal year 2010-2011.

Laura Rosenthal of the City Council adds, “Yes, I am satisfied with our budget though, of course, I wish that we were able to have a balanced budget at this time.  However, I am very sensitive to public safety concerns and am willing to dip into our reserve for those projects and needs. We are certainly not the first council to take money out of the reserve – just the first to do it at the actual budget voting meeting.”

Today’s budget  consists of $38 million in overall spending, which includes $21 million being taken from the city’s fund. The city went into the fund to cover expenditures such as;

· Extra  motorcycle officer on Pacific Coast Highway ($179,000)

· Water quality study ($100,000)

· Grants for community programs ($12,500)

· Orthodontic insurance for city staff ($4,000)

Malibu has had a fund  of $8 million throughout the years to secure the city from potential fires and a number of equivalent disasters that could take place at any point in time. With the decision made last week for deficit spending, the city still has set aside, a fund equaling to be more than $9.2 million.

“As others have said, the reserve is for emergencies and other very important needs that may arise during the year. Important expenditures such as public safety, money for teens (a very under-served population in Malibu), road maintenance and water quality. I am hoping for a healthy and active summer season in Malibu so that our tax revenues increase and we can put back all of the money into our reserve that we took out this month.  However, we are still over the amount that we have designated that is needed for the reserve,” concludes Rosenthal.