Councilman Boucher: Does the City Need a $35 Million Line of Credit? [VIDEO]
Shreveport City Councilman Grayson Boucher talks about the upcoming council session and his thoughts on the possibilities of the city getting a $35 million line of credit to cover city costs.
"Basically, what the administration wants to do is borrow $35 million, somewhat of a line of credit...so they'll have that money as a contingency. I personally prefer to cut the budget and be able to have a reserve like we truly need. Most cities have 10 to 15% reserve where if there are such emergencies...we're pretty low right now."
Mayor Adrian Perkins, meanwhile, says that the money is needed to cover the expenses the city is facing as a result of lost sales tax revenue during the Coronavirus business shutdowns. The Mayor has also said that the city will fall short by around $25 million, even after additional cuts are made.
"I think this is an effort (by the Perkins administration) to have some money in case they need to do something," he continues, "But my biggest concern, even if we don't draw any money out of this line of credit, you'll still have the cost of the attorney's, the origination fees and I'm just not sure that we need to be borrowing, even for emergencies, because right now, I don't think we're in a state of emergency."