The city of Portage appears to be off to a better financial start in 2023.
The Indiana Department of Local Government Finance has approved the city's budget with no cuts. That's different from last year, when a $400,000 cut led to a cash flow challenge for the Park and Recreation Department.
And while the city still has to borrow money to get it through to the next tax distribution, Clerk-Treasurer Nina Rivas says the amount has gone down significantly over the past few years.
"We don't have as much cash reserves as I would like, as much as we should, so we still have to borrow from the Indiana Bond Bank, a tax anticipation warrant. We pay this back when we get our fall settlement in the following December," Rivas told the Portage City Council Tuesday.
Council members approved the temporary loan. Rivas noted that the city only has to borrow $2.02 million this year, compared to $10.7 million in 2020.