BIDDEFORD — City Councilors gave initial approval to the city side of the budget on Monday. By approving expenditures at $23.2 million ”“ higher than the figure they started the night with ”“ it’s unclear how the budget will affect the new tax rate.

Due to current economic conditions, prior to budget discussions councilors had requested that the city manager bring forward a budget that would not increase the property tax rate over last year’s rate of $14.78 per $1,000 of assessed property value.

Approximately $80,000 was cut by councilors for individual line items like office supplies and repairs. However, $200,000 was added to the Capital Projects budget for road work.

In trying to adhere to the councilors’ wishes relating to the budget, City Manager John Bubier said the road work budget he proposed was only $250,000, which was lower than previous years. However, he said, that was because bonds and stimulus money are expected to provide additional funds to pay for more road construction.

In November, a $4 million road bond and a $4.9 million bond for sewer separation work (which will also cover some road construction) were approved by Biddeford voters. In addition, the city will receive approximately $3 million in stimulus money for sewer separation.

The majority of cuts made by councilors were for costs associated with training and licensing of city employees. City Manager John Bubier said he will be gathering material regarding this prior to the final reading of the total budget, scheduled for next week. Training is essential for personnel in a number of departments to keep them up to state-mandated standards to perform their jobs, said Bubier.

Councilor Patricia Boston requested information regarding what the city was responsible for paying for in relation to training. Much of that has been historically paid by the city, said Bubier, as it is spelled out in some of the union contracts with city personnel.

The city manager was also concerned about more than $200,000 cut from the proposed airport budget, which was to cover a land purchase and consultant fees for work required by the Federal Aviation Administration.

“At some point, the FAA will come in and say, ”˜We told you to do it from a safety point,’” he said. Without doing FAA-required work and other work required by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, the city may be faced with fines and other penalties in the future, he said.

A motion to remove $150,000 from the sewer budget and let the Public Works Department operate the wastewater treatment plant on Water Street was voted down. The plant is currently operated by private contractor CH2MHILL.

Councilor Rick Laverriere said he thought the issue should be placed on a regular City Council meeting agenda and give the public a chance to provide input.

The first reading of the school side of the budget is scheduled to take place Thursday at 7 p.m. at City Hall. The final reading of the entire budget is scheduled for Monday, May 18, at 7 p.m. at City Hall.

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, Ext. 324 or dmendros@gwi.net.