The budget approved by the Thousand Oaks City Council on June 9 could change due to fluctuations in water rates, public safety costs, and sales and property tax revenue.

Water rates are expected to increase; police costs charged to the city by the county are anticipated to rise by as much as 5 percent. Sales and property tax monies may continue to decline.

CalPERS retirement fund figures won't be released until November. Since the stock market hasn't been performing well, T.O. taxpayers could owe as much as $1.5 million to protect city employees' retirement accounts.

Stormwater permit costs are another uncertainty. The city budgeted $50,000 that may be required by the state to clean up the city's stormwater, but all of the costs have yet to be identified, said finance director John Adams.

The state may borrow $2 billion from its cities, which would mean a $2.4-million extraction from Thousand Oaks property taxes. City leaders said they would dip into capital improvement reserves to lend the state the money.

The funds are expected to be returned within three years.

The budget leaves about $19 million in reserves, complying with city policy of retaining 20 percent of the budget in savings.

The reserve account was built up over the past 40 years, when revenues were higher than expenditures. Reserves are used only for one-time expenditures, Adams said.

Loss of Proposition 42 money may require more than $1 million. In 2002, nearly 70 percent of voters approved Prop. 42, requiring state sales tax on motor fuels to be used only for transportation purposes. Loss of that funding will affect city facility maintenance, according to public works director Mark Watkins.

State Senate Bill 716, currently under review, would prohibit Thousand Oaks from using excess money from the state Transportation Development Act (TDA) to repair streets. Currently, municipalities can repair streets with money remaining after public transportation needs are met. T.O. could lose about $1.5 million it's counting on, Watkins said.

The city repaves streets every 20 to 25 years. Without TDA money, repaving could be pushed up to an unacceptable 60 or 80 years, Watkins said.

Last week, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors voted not to cancel the contract giving $195,000 of Thousand Oaks area tax money earmarked for library services. City residents pay about $80 each in taxes for city library services.

The city will stop sweeping streets in January, saving about $600,000. Sweeping will be done by rubbish collection firms, which will pass the costs to customers.

Four street sweepers will be reassigned to other public works jobs currently funded but unfilled, Watkins said.

No money was set aside for several capital improvement projects that Councilmember Claudia Bill-de la Peña referred to as "cosmetic," such as an upgrade of the Fred Kavli Theatre lobby, a new design for the turna-round and repainting of the Civic Arts Plaza parking lot.

"Some capital improvement projects have been pushed out a couple of years," Adams said.

Maintenance of the city's $1 billion in capital assets aren't cosmetic but contribute to the community's quality of life, Adams said.