No.124 Initial Budget for Fiscal Year 2022

In preparing the budget for fiscal year 2021, there were concerns that the impact of COVID-19 would cause the economy to stagnate to the level of the Lehman Shock, leading to a decline in Municipal Tax revenues. The city declared a "Fiscal Crisis Alert State" and adopted a contractionary budget, implementing measures to reduce the salaries of the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Education Director for one year.
However, in practice, the income levels of residents did not decline as much as anticipated, and fortunately, the impact was minimal. In this situation, the Fiscal Crisis Alert was lifted, but since the COVID-19 infection has not subsided, we will continue to manage our finances with a sense of tension.

In the fiscal year 2022, we decided to forgo the 5% negative sealing on discretionary expenses implemented last year and carried out budget formulation based on the following three points.
First, to protect the lives and livelihoods of citizens from COVID-19, while addressing administrative issues with an eye toward living with COVID-19 and the post-COVID-19 era. Second, to implement sustainable financial and administrative management aimed at realizing the future city image defined in the basic concept of the Fifth Long-Term Comprehensive Plan of Inagi City. Third, to prioritize the safety of citizens by working on disaster prevention and mitigation measures.

The budget was approved at the 1st Regular Session of the City Council held in March, so we would like to provide an overview.
The amount of the General Fund Budget for fiscal year 2022 is 36.06 billion yen, making it the third largest budget in history, an increase of 1.3% or 4.58 billion yen compared to the previous year.
Municipal Tax, which accounts for 44.6% of revenue, increased by 7.4% due to the increase in the number of taxpayers and newly constructed houses, exceeding 16 billion yen. The local allocation tax increased by 17%, approximately 1.27 billion yen, as part of the calculation unit is based on the figures from the 2020 national census, resulting in an overall increase of 7.3%, approximately 1.36 billion yen in general revenue.
In terms of expenditures, the increase in assistance costs such as expenses for children with disabilities, operating expenses for private childcare centers, Public Assistance, disability care benefits, and operating expenses for private After-School Childcare Programs, as well as property expenses related to COVID-19 vaccination, exceeded the reductions in transfers to special accounts for the Land Readjustment Project and various subsidies, as well as ordinary construction project costs, resulting in an overall increase.
The main construction projects for this fiscal year include improvements to the Yomiuri Land Line No. 3, 4, and 12, replacement work for the Oshitate Drainage Pump Station discharge valve, and renovations of the air conditioning system at the Shiroyama Cultural Center, with related expenses totaling approximately 7.85 billion yen. However, due to the absence of large-scale construction projects, investment expenses remain low, continuing from last year, and the issuance of municipal bonds (debt) as a funding source has also been significantly reduced.

Next, we will introduce the distinctive budgets for each policy issue.

Digitalization Promotion Related
We will conduct smartphone classes for citizens to learn basic smartphone operations and administrative procedures. In the processing of applications from citizens, we aim to introduce AI, OCR, and RPA technologies to achieve automation and efficiency. We will lend tablet devices to the members of the Board of Education and the Inagi City Agricultural Committee, preparing for paperless operations and the implementation of web conferences.

Child Care Support Related
In response to the increased demand for the After-School Childcare Program, we will expand the capacity at seven locations as an emergency measure, privatize the After-School Childcare Program at Koyodai Elementary School to meet the diverse needs of users, and begin design work for an expansion to increase the capacity of the After-School Childcare Program at Minamiyama Elementary School. Regarding Childcare Centers, we will revise the childcare system to accommodate daily calculations of fees in the event of closures due to infectious diseases, and subsidize expenses for placing nurses and other staff at facilities that accept infants and young children requiring medical care.

Support for Older Adults
We will trial a loan program for IoT light bulbs that notify the status of lighting and extinguishing through human sensors, as well as monitoring sensors that utilize internet connections, to supplement the monitoring of older adults living at home. The Inagi City Senior Welfare Plan and the Inagi City Long-Term Care Insurance Business Plan (9th term), which have a planning period from fiscal year 6 to 8, will be developed integrally during fiscal years 4 to 5.

Disability Support Related
In response to the increase in consultation cases, we will design the renovation of the old No. 4 Nursery School to establish a facility that has the functions of a Child Development Support Center and conducts developmental support activities. We will also consider attracting a day service facility for children with severe physical and intellectual disabilities to the vacant space in this facility.

Welfare Consultation and Economic Support
We will maintain the system of increasing counselors at the welfare living consultation desk and implement employment preparation support projects and household budget improvement support projects along with the self-reliance consultation support project.

Education Related
While maintaining the framework of the community education council, which is a pioneering initiative unique to the city, we will establish a new school management council and transition all elementary and junior high schools to community schools. We will utilize external personnel with advanced expertise in physical education and foreign language activities at elementary schools. In response to the increase in the number of students, we will carry out renovation work to repurpose multipurpose rooms into regular classrooms at Daiyon Elementary School, Hirao Elementary School, and Minamiyama Elementary School, and we will also design an expansion project for Minamiyama Elementary School. For Daini Junior High School, we will design renovation work for roof waterproofing and exterior walls due to the aging of the school building. Regarding the joint school lunch kitchen, we will acquire land for the second phase of the new kitchen construction and organize the site for effective use of the old kitchen's location.

Disaster Prevention and Mitigation
To prevent road subsidence, we will conduct cavity investigations beneath the roads, replace the discharge valves at the Oshitate Drainage Pump Station to prepare for internal water flooding, and deploy water disaster response vehicles (trucks with cranes).

COVID-19 Measures
To support restaurants in the city that use locally produced agricultural products, we will subsidize the cost of purchasing ingredients. To revitalize the local economy, we will issue digital gift certificates in conjunction with paper gift certificates. We will provide business continuity support funds (Phase 4) to local business operators whose sales have decreased. We will distribute COVID-19 antigen test kits to kindergartens, nursery schools, elementary and junior high schools, after-school childcare programs, and after-school children's programs. To support local public transportation operators whose business environment has deteriorated due to a decrease in users, we will update two iBus vehicles.

Creation of Vibrancy Related
We will install tourist information signs at the official starting point of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic cycling road race, create a cycling map, and produce costumes of original characters. We will subsidize part of the expenses for the visit to our overseas Sister City, Foster City, and install signposts to Sister Cities and Friendship Cities within the City Hall premises.

This year marks the third year of our response to COVID-19, and we will continue to implement measures such as the third round of vaccinations for those aged 12 and older, and vaccinations for children aged 5 to 11. Let us work together to overcome this infectious disease.