Sycamore city considers changing fiscal year to line up with calendar year

SYCAMORE – Sycamore city leaders are considering changing their budget’s fiscal year, historically from May to April to line up with the calendar year.

The proposal to begin the city’s fiscal year Jan. 1, 2024, was given a first round greenlight this week by the Sycamore City Council. The proposed ordinance is expected to go before the City Council for a final vote at a future meeting.

The city of Sycamore’s fiscal year currently runs from May 1 through April 30. City Manager Michael Hall said he believes there are many advantages to getting in line with a calendar year.

“There’s quite a few cities that have done that,” Hall said. The city of DeKalb’s fiscal year also coincides with the traditional calendar year.

Hall said cities who align their budget years with calendar years can sometimes rely on tax revenue to help ease payroll burdens, though said Sycamore doesn’t have that problem.

“So changing to a calendar year, what is the advantage? There’s a lot of discounts available to us by doing it that way,” Hall said, including year-end discounts from auto manufacturers.

Hall said the city’s fiscal calendar doesn’t align with standard property tax calendars, since tax levies need to be set before the calendar year’s end. Municipalities factor that into their budgets, but Sycamore’s budget isn’t set until the spring.

“To me that’s kind of backwards,” Hall said.

First Ward Alderman Josh Huseman said he wanted to get clarification on what the budget from May 1, 2023, through Dec. 31, 2023, would look like and how that would affect future city audits.

Hall said if the city changes its fiscal year to align with the calendar year next year, 2023, could see two budgets. The second would cover the city from May 1, 2021, through Dec. 31, 2023.

Sycamore finance director Brien Martin said his office confirmed with state, legal and audit departments that changing a fiscal calendar wouldn’t be an issue for city audits.

“It’s a big change and I would like to see something from them in writing just helping to understand what that process is,” Huseman said.

Hall said the city’s auditors are visiting this week.

Second Ward Alderman Chuck Stowe said he thinks changing the fiscal year is a good idea.

“The one thing that always bothered me was when all the city offices are up for election in April,” Stowe said. “I don’t know how many times we have had new city officers come in and the first thing they’ve had to do ... is vote on the budget for next year.”