The $2.45 billion operating budget Mayor Kirk Caldwell plans to unveil today proposes a new trash pickup fee and increases to bus fares and Residential A property taxes for next fiscal year that officials say are needed to fund hikes in nondiscretionary spending — including debt service, employee retirement and collective bargaining.

Caldwell is seeking an increase of 30 cents per $1,000 of assessed value for Residential A properties, which are those valued at more than $1 million that do not have home exemptions. The move is estimated to generate an additional $6 million in the next fiscal year, according to Budget and Fiscal Services officials. Caldwell’s administration is also proposing an increase of 50 cents for every $1,000 for hotel and resort properties, which is also estimated to net $6 million in revenue next fiscal year.

For bus fares, city policy requires that between 27 percent and 33 percent of TheBus revenue come from the farebox. The proposal would increase fares across the board, including a 25-cent hike for single-ride fares and a $5 increase for senior annual passes, but it would not reduce service. Budget officials say bus fare increases are needed to boost fare revenue, which has dipped below the mandated 27 percent. The move is estimated to generate an additional $6 million annually. Bus fares have not been raised across the board since 2010, officials said.

In a statement Wednesday, Caldwell said his proposed budget reduces department spending and addresses the city’s “increasing mandatory obligations.”

“It avoids raising property taxes on owner-occupants by shifting the burden to investors owning multimillion-dollar homes and resorts,” he said.

The budget represents a 5.1 percent increase, or about $118 million more than the current 2017 operating budget. The mayor’s proposed $956 million capital improvements budget represents a 2 percent increase, or about $16 million more than this year.

The mayor also wants to implement a new trash pickup fee of $10 per month for all single-family homes. Caldwell said it would eliminate the “inequity between (condominium) owners who must pay for private trash pickup and single-family homeowners who get it for no additional fee.” Budget officials estimate the fee would generate about $20 million annually.

All of Caldwell’s proposed “revenue enhancers” will be introduced as bills and need City Council approval.

Budget Director Nelson Koyanagi said Wednesday that there have been significant increases in nondiscretionary spending, such as the city’s contributions to the Employees’ Retirement System, which are estimated at $20 million more for next fiscal year, and collective bargaining contracts, which all end this year.

Additionally, Koyanagi said the city is adding more “front of the house” positions, including 20 parks groundskeepers and seven lifeguards. He said 522 positions will remain deactivated while the city has added 191 positions. City officials also plan to purchase a few personal watercraft, which along with the new lifeguard positions will ensure that the entire island will have personal watercraft coverage, Koyanagi said. The city also plans to fill about 20 positions for a new Department of Land Management, which was created by voters via a Charter amendment.

“We did look at what we could do to minimize expenses, and I think we did a pretty good job,” Koyanagi said. “The department budgets stayed flat yet we were able to provide these additional resources for the departments to do more. That’s why we’re looking at revenue enhancements.”

But Councilwoman Ann Kobayashi, who had not yet seen Caldwell’s budget, said the proposed increases will overburden residents, pointing out that Caldwell’s administration is also seeking hikes to the city’s vehicle weight and fuel taxes, which are estimated to generate revenue for the Highway Fund. Bills on those proposals are pending before the Council. She said even though the city needs to staff a new Land Management department, it could decrease the number of positions.

The administration’s proposal would increase the vehicle weight tax by 1 cent per pound for both passenger and commercial vehicles in each of the next two years. For the fuel tax, it would raise the rate for non-biodiesel fuel to 20 cents per gallon from the current 16.5 cents. Caldwell’s administration said the city has not raised the fuel tax since 1989.

“People are just trying to make a living,” Kobayashi said. “I believe in looking inward … and start to make cuts where we can rather than spending money. This is not the time to be expanding government.”