New London — The city manager is proposing a nearly 5 percent increase in the 2011-12 budget that includes 12 new police officers, six other full- and part-time workers and the creation of a department that would oversee facilities, development and planning.

The proposed $83.2 million spending plan, which was released Monday, is $2.3 million more than the current budget and would require a 1.24-mill increase in the tax rate.

The increase to 26.55 mills would mean that the owner of a home assessed at $200,000 would pay about $5,300 in taxes, or about $248 more.

The City Council's finance committee is scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. Wednesday and 4 p.m. Thursday to discuss the proposal.

"My intent is to get to zero if not to go the other way," said City Councilor and Finance Committee Chairman Rob Pero, referring to his desire to not increase the tax rate.

The budget includes $39,817,405 for education, which is roughly $900,000 less than the $40.5 million that the Board of Education requested. It is the same amount being spent in the current budget.

School spending represents 47 percent of the municipal budget, with city services covering 45.5 percent and debt services at 6.7 percent.

"This is a proposal,'' said Superintendent Nicholas A. Fischer. "We'll come in and make our case and see what comes out of it.''

Under the proposal, the police department would add 14 positions, including 11 additional police officers at six-month salaries of $26,137 each, a new police lieutenant at $74,901, a police secretary at $34,800 and a part-time crimes analyst at $38,220. There is also $90,000 for a deputy fire chief, a position that has remained unfunded for years.

In an email, Deputy Chief Marshall Segar said the additional 12 patrol officers would boost the force to 108. He said the request by Chief Margaret Ackley is in line with the 2007 city-commissioned study on effective policing practices and recommendations, which suggested an optimal staffing level of 118 officers.

Segar said Ackley has implemented many of the study's staffing and procedural recommendations. Staffing is one of the last remaining areas to be implemented.

The 117-page budget document also calls for a senior system analyst in the IT department and two new positions in the finance department - a part-time accountant and a part-time administrative assistant.

A new Facilities, Development & Planning Department, with a budget of $969,000, would combine the planning and zoning, economic development, building inspections and building maintenance divisions. It would be charged with maintaining existing structures, monitoring ongoing projects and developing long-term planning objectives, according to City Manager Denise Rose's budget message.

Over the past year the city has seen some increased revenues, according to Rose, including an increase in building permits, tax audits and improved tax collections.

Eighteen months ago the city initiated a program to recoup more than $4 million in past-due motor vehicle taxes and to date has netted about $400,000.

A pilot personal property tax audit program was started in October, generating about $184,000 in new taxes. The city audited 10 businesses and discovered about $7 million in unreported property. The program, which costs between $15,000 and $30,000 a year, has been expanded with a goal of auditing 30 to 50 business each year.

k.edgecomb@theday.com