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Meetinghouse 2027 Budget

Spending

July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027

Spending $316,044,835

Mayor's 2027 Budgetary Goals

The preliminary framework guiding the budget directives for 2027 includes the following initiatives:

  • Strive to limit the property tax bill increase to 3.3% in order to reduce the impact on taxpayers.
  • Maintain an excess levy of 1.6% of the total available levy to serve as a budgetary reserve, as well as set aside savings for future capital projects.
  • Decrease the city's historical reliance on free cash to subsidize the operating budget in order to build a more structurally stable budget and adhere to the city's internal financial policies.
  • Develop a long-term, stable budget using a 10-year projection model as a tool to ensure that current budget decisions and initiatives will be supported by future revenue growth.

Long-Term Perspective Strategic Goals

The long-term strategic goals influencing the 2027 budget process include the following:

  • Ensure long-range forecasts will maintain reserves in accordance with internal policies.
  • Ensure that debt ratios will comply with state statutes and the city's financial policies.
  • Continue to meet or exceed the statutory net school spending requirements.
  • Allocate funding for maintenance of capital equipment, buildings, and infrastructure.
  • Plan for long-range capital projects such as a Fire Station, JG Whittier Middle School, and Whittier Technical High School.

Preliminary Budget Goals for Fiscal 2027

The Mayor's initial budget objectives for fiscal 2027 encompassed several key components:

  • A 3.3% property tax increase.
  • Absorption of the first 50% reduction from the Fire Department's Federal SAFER grant, with the second half needing to be absorbed in 2028 to avoid potential layoffs.
  • Incorporation of the Police Department's Crisis Intervention Counselor and BRU Clinician, previously funded by Federal ARPA funds.
  • Allocation of funds to maintain level services across the city.

Final Recommendations

The final recommendation to balance the 2027 operating budget involves utilizing a portion of the city's tax levy reserve. This option was carefully considered to prevent creating a structurally unbalanced budget or leaving unresolved issues for 2028. The city's projected excess levy for 2027, which represents the amount of funds that can be appropriated without a referendum, totals $2.6 million. Using the entire excess levy would undoubtedly lead to a deficit for 2028, likely resulting in layoffs.

The Mayor's budget proposal includes a year-over-year budget increase of 2.9% and using an additional $1.1 million from the city's levy reserve, leaving an excess tax levy of $1.5 million. Utilizing this additional levy will increase the estimated tax bill by 4.1%, or $244.97 for the average single-family home, based on the 2026 valuations and tax shift percentages. The tax bill increase for the average single-family home in 2026 was 4.6%.

  1. 1/9/26 Directives to departments Mayor distributed budget directives to departments. Done.
  2. 1/15/26 Finance projections Finance prepared revenue projections, high-level budget estimates, identified budget pressures, compiled capital requests, and assessed debt capacity. Done.
  3. 2/5/26 Forecasts evaluated The budget team evaluated revenue and appropriation forecasts, offering insights into high-priority requirements. Done.
  4. 2/6/26 Department requests due Department budget requests, narratives and KPIs due. Done.
  5. 2/23-3/13 Department reviews Mayor, CFO and Deputy Auditor met with each department to review requests, priorities and KPIs. Done.
  6. 4/2/26 Capital requests ranked The budget team met with departments to discuss, rank, and prioritize all capital requests by utilizing standardized ranking criteria. Done.
  7. 4/3/26 Preliminary budget Mayor and CFO formulated Mayor's preliminary budget. Done.
  8. 4/9/26 Budget team feedback Presented Mayor's preliminary budget to budget team for feedback. Done.
  9. 4/10/26 Final revisions Mayor and CFO finalized and implemented the last revisions to the budget. Done.
  10. 4/13-4/17 Final review PDF, the budget book, opens the city's file in a new tab Mayor, Chief of Staff, CFO and Deputy Auditor met with departments to review final recommendations. Done.
  11. 5/27-6/8 Public hearings PDF, the City Council agenda, opens the city's file in a new tab Department public budget hearings -City Hall Council Chambers 6pm. Done.
  12. 6/16/26 Budget adopted Budget Adoption by City Council. Done. This is where the budget is.
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