At a crossroads in the struggle to balance Madison’s budget, the city will either rely on $22 million from a property tax referendum or $6 million in cuts to city services, according to two versions of a five-year budget unveiled by Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway.
Rhodes-Conway is touting the referendum plan as a long-term fix to the city’s budget, which has faced a mismatch between revenue and spending for over decade amid declining support from the state and limits in state law on how it can raise money.
Both versions of the five-year budget count on raising millions from new charges billed to residents every month to further close the budget gap. Twenty-five million dollars from the city’s reserves, or so-called “rainy day fund,” will be spent by 2030 under the plans, though a referendum could reduce the need to dip into that fund. Ongoing budget efficiency measures will make up what’s left of the gap in both versions of the budget.