The budget is the document by which the Mayor and City Council designate which projects will be done, which services will be provided, and what level of service will be delivered. The City of Hastings budget is prepared, adopted and implemented in accordance with the State of Nebraska Budget Act. This Budget Introduction has been prepared to provide the reader with additional information about the City Budget. We believe that it is important that Hastings residents and taxpayers not only have full access to budget information, but are also provided with a narrative explanation about the budget document. If you are taking the trouble to read this document, we want to make it understandable and meaningful to you.
Planning is the first and most critical element of the budget process.
The Mayor and Council have the lead role in the planning phase by establishing service levels, directing new programs or projects, and setting priorities. Planning occurs throughout the year but is the central focus of the Mayor and Council's annual planning retreat. In the planning element, the key concerns of citizens represented by the Mayor and City Council are discussed, and the budget is laid out in respect to those concerns. The management element is to direct the work of the City departments in conformity with the program of service established by the Mayor and Council. Fiscal control is the use of the budget as a tool to measure the City's financial performance.