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KCMO to face another expected deficit this fiscal year of $50M

By Madison Parry

A continued financial strain related to COVID-19 has Kansas City, Mo. officials searching for more ways to cut back on costs. City officials report an anticipated $50-million deficit during the current fiscal year but assure no tax increase will be implemented to close the gap.

Financial constraints on the City of Kansas City, Mo. caused by COVID-19 will not be going away soon.

In a Thursday press conference, the city reported they anticipate a $50-million deficit during the current fiscal year.

“It’s very difficult to estimate revenue during a pandemic,” Krista Morrison, KCMO budget officer said.

City officials say they are not surprised to face another deficit as COVID-19 continues to impact businesses and operations throughout the region and beyond.

Kansas City, Mo. has sustained significant losses from casinos closures, license, and permit revenue and from money related to utility taxes.

“Coming out of the great recession, we did not have these kinds of reserves, and so we have clawed our way back, if you will, over these last 10 years to get to the point where we are,” Tammy Queen, director of the KCMO Finance Department, said. “I guess maybe my overall message would be don’t panic.”

Officials continue to work on generating ways to close the gap, Kansas City, Mo. Mayor Quinton Lucas assuring it would not be filled with a tax increase.

“What we’re going to do, and what we have been doing over the last however many months now that we’ve been in this situation, is sharpening our pencils, seeing where we can find savings, seeing where we can find new revenue sources, which there aren’t a ton,” Lucas said.

Among the ideas and options weighed at Thursday’s City Council business session was a switch to LED lights, specifically for streetlights which the city manager said costs the city around $13 million to keep on.