Syracuse Common Councilors are wrapping up their review of the upcoming fiscal year budget, and the city auditor said his first-ever mid-year report could better inform them as they consider changes.
Let’s start with the credit side of the ledger. So far, auditor Alexander Marion said the city may slightly exceed its sales tax projections on July 1. As of January 1, sales tax revenue totaled $60.5 million. But he said councilors should be cautious.
“Sales tax needs to be addressed conservatively, as the war in Iran impacts gas prices, impacts the entire global economy, we see a weakening labor market across the country," Marion said. "I believe we need to be concerned about the future of sales tax. And while we are currently on target, any shortfall, whether it's this year or in future years, could harm the city's fiscal health.”
Marion said a new revenue stream in the form of a room occupancy tax is proving to be fruitful.
“At the mid-year point we collected about $332,000, or 42% of the estimated total of $800,000," he said. "I think this is on a good track and still has potential to grow. I know that there are some discussed hotel developments in the pipeline, and I think we can see that going up in future years.”
Then there’s the debit side of the ledger.
“We have good news in the hundreds of thousands, bad news in the millions,” Marion said.
Employee health insurance is the single biggest driver of city expenses, he said. Last year, the city budgeted $43 million and spent nearly $51 million.
“We expect that to grow again this year," Marion said. "In fiscal year 2026, the current fiscal year that we're in, we budgeted $50 million, and at the mid-year point, we have spent more than half, about $28 million.”
That’s almost the water department’s budget for an entire year. Marion adds overtime costs continue to be a major driver of expenses. The city has used 70% of its overall overtime budget, and the police department burned through nearly all of its overtime allocation as of Jan 1.
