Budget

Gahanna’s budget is a comprehensive financial plan for human resources, operating, and capital resource availability to the City. Each of these resources work together to provide services that meet the needs of Gahanna residents, businesses, and other stakeholders. The budget includes both estimates of resources available, including revenues and fund balances and appropriations, which are the authority to spend money for specific purposes.

Administration and City Council are committed to creating a budget through an open and transparent process. Throughout the year, City Council and the Administration work together to increase public awareness and participation in the budgeting process. An overview of the calendar of events, including public presentations, forums and public feedback is presented below. Financial publications and reports can be found on this page.

Proposed Budget

The budget is prepared by the Administration and adopted by the City Council after after a series of Council and Committee meetings where the public has the ability to provide feedback. The budget document is divided into ten major sections and provides financial and operational information about the City from a variety of perspectives and in degrees of detail. 

The annual budget process is outlined below and results in Council adopting the budget which provides the legal authority for the City to expend public funds. Adoption occurs at the end of December with an effective date of January 1.

Budget Documents

Annual Budget Process

The community is invited to be involved in the budgeting process by attending public meetings and participating in the public forums. Gahanna's annual budget is one of the most important and informative documents City officials, staff and citizens will use. It is the financial plan for the year, identifying the City's priorities and policy environment, and reporting department activities and performance.

Developing the City's budget is a year-round process that ends each December with the final formal adoption of the budget by City Council. Key milestones of the process are the submission of the state mandated tax budget each July, completion and presentation of the annual Capital Improvement Plan, and then Council's formal adoption of the budget.

Tax Budget & Planning

May - August

Budget Development

August - October

Budget Review & Public Input

November - December

Adoption & Implementation

December - January

Appropriations

The City of Gahanna is required by Ohio Revised Code 5705 to adopt an appropriation ordinance on or about the first day of each fiscal year. This appropriation ordinance controls expenditures at the fund, departmental and object level (the legal level of control). The appropriations may be amended or supplemented by Council during the year as required, by action of Council. The appropriation ordinance sets spending limitations within each fund and department by category: salaries and benefits, operating expenditures, and capital outlay. City Council, in the appropriations ordinance, gives the Finance Director the authority to make transfers up to $3,000 between appropriation line items within any department and fund. Any requests in excess of $3,000 must be approved by Council.

Unencumbered appropriations lapse at year-end and are returned to fund balance. Encumbrances outstanding at year-end are carried forward in the following year. The prior year appropriations corresponding to these encumbrances are also carried forward in order to provide budgetary authority for these expenses.