1. **State the problem:** We want to find the value of $x$ when $y = 7000$ in the linear equation $y = -23.04x + 6223.44$. 2. **Given equation:** $$y = -23.04x + 6223.44$$ 3. **Substitute $y = 7000$ into the equation:** $$7000 = -23.04x + 6223.44$$ 4. **Isolate the term with $x$:** $$-23.04x = 7000 - 6223.44$$ $$-23.04x = 776.56$$ 5. **Solve for $x$ by dividing both sides by $-23.04$:** $$x = \frac{776.56}{-23.04}$$ $$x \approx -33.69$$ 6. **Interpretation:** The value of $x$ that corresponds to a budget of 7000 is approximately $-33.69$. This means that with the given linear model, $x$ would have to be about $-33.69$ to reach a cost of 7000, which may not be realistic depending on the context of $x$ (usage).