By Anna Thomasson | Paradise Valley Independent (Image by Tumisu from Pixabay)
Last week while unloading the dishwasher, I came across a pair of very clean takeout-sushi chopsticks. I looked at my husband Gary, who, with a twinkle in his eye said, “If you can wash and reuse baggies, I can reuse chopsticks.”
We both laughed the way couples who have been married a long time laugh when they prank each other.
Truth is, one of the many reasons we love living in Paradise Valley is the long tradition of fiscal conservatism. Since I began serving you on Town Council in 2019, I’ve learned even more about how well we are managed:
- Our annual operating budget is approximately $32 million; about 60% of our revenue comes from local sales tax, resort bed tax and construction sales tax.
The balance comes from state shared revenue, highway improvement funds and various fees and license agreements. Because we have no local property tax generating a predicable revenue stream, our policy is to keep at least 90% of our annual operating budget in a reserve account, and we often have over 100%, typically one of the highest in the state.
