GRU Authority votes for joint meeting with Gainesville City Commission 

Community groups and city leaders readied for a decision on Wednesday night concerning $15.3 million in city of Gainesville funding sent by Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) to the general government—known as the general services contribution.  

However, not bound to make a final decision, the Gainesville Regional Utilities Authority instead decided to delay a vote and schedule a meeting with the Gainesville City Commission.  

The motion passed unanimously and directs GRU to set up the joint meeting in the next 45 days. Authority members said they want to create a plan for GRU to reduce debt and lower rates without Gainesville residents still feeling fiscal impacts as the city tries to recoup the lost $15.3 million.  

The authority also voted to continue its search for a permanent general manager/CEO, adding $50,000 more for the process. The search is expected to take between six and eight months to finish and could have an ultimate fiscal impact of half a million dollars.  

Heading into Wednesday’s meeting, many people had already spoken on the main issue of the city’s general services contribution. 

Gainesville City Manager Cynthia Curry issued a public statement and city memo concerning the impacts of a $15.3 million reduction to its budget. The Alachua County Labor Coalition and the Sierra Club held a press conference on Tuesday, opposing any cuts to the general services contribution. Gainesville Residents United, which is challenging the authority in court, also posted a warning about the Wednesday meeting.  

GRU staff presented options to eliminate or reduce the general services contribution, and the authority members looked to apply any savings to debt reduction or lowering rates for customers. Despite keeping $15.3 million per year—and more in future years—GRU analysis still showed a need to raise rates in the future.  

The raised rates would offset the negative reserve balances currently predicted for the water, wastewater and gas utilities.  

Board member Robert Karow offered a motion to completely reduce the $15.3 million transfer. Board member James Coats said he would second the motion if he thought it would pass, but based on the conversations, board members Eric Lawson and Craig Carter opposed the decision.  

“The governor chose people to lower rates and to stabilize the utility, and unfortunately, we don’t have that many levers to play with,” Coats said.  

He said that the money transfer is one of the few options for the utility to use.  

Conversations also touched on the City Commission’s role in GRU’s current fiscal position. Carter said he’d like to see GRU made whole for money taken by general government that exceeded the utility’s revenues.  

“The decisions that were made to benefit the city and not the utility, I have interest in clawing back,” Carter said, specifically mentioning decisions he made when on the City Commission from 2014 to 2017.  

But he wasn’t ready to cut the general services contribution without fully knowing the impact on ratepayers. Carter said the customers would still foot the bill as the city tries to make up the shortfall.  

Board members discussed the possibility of the commission imposing a franchise fee to recoup the money. Attorney Scott Walker said the City Commission might be able to find a way to impose the fee, though they would need to step through the legal hurdles.  

Coats had previously placed an item on an agenda to schedule a joint meeting. He pulled the item from consideration, and on Wednesday, he said that had to do with negative public discourse.  

“The challenge that I have is that the message from across the street has been 100% negative,” Coats said. 

Before the meeting, Curry released an 800-word statement giving the city’s perspective on the general services contribution and its impact to the city’s budget. The release said that all departments will likely be asked to make cuts. It also warned community organizations about the impacts.  

“Our goal is to keep neighbors aware of the budget situation that General Government may face,” she wrote. “In the spirit of transparency, we are communicating early and often. This includes messages to community organizations that have received the City’s financial support in the past.” 

The release echoed one she sent out in December that said local nonprofits shouldn’t rely on Gainesville funding for the coming fiscal year.  

Authority members said they wanted the City Commission to contribute ideas to reduce debt and help ratepayers while keeping the transfer in place. But members said they could also leave the meeting and decide to cut the transfer.  

“We now have the stick and carrot ability to sit down with the city and say, “Ok, this is what we all want to try to accomplish for our customers,’” Lawson said.  

On Wednesday, the authority did vote to stop sending Gainesville general government $180,906 per month. These funds reflect services that Cunningham said the utility no longer needs since the authority took control.  

The reduction will save GRU $1.4 million for this fiscal year and immediately force the general government to find new funds, since the city had already budgeted that revenue.  

As part of that item, the authority also voted to have Carter and Cunningham talk with charter officers to see what services the utility will continue to use and what costs will be associated with it.