[{"_1":2,"_111":-5,"_112":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,99],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6062600,"mediaKeyId","3277217-c003cb1ee3e15c2611547d0a0eb31d83","parentId",3277217,"title","Public commenters press council on use of fund balance, levy buy‑down and shelter policy","audioSeconds",471,"startMs",5559000,"endMs",6030000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3277217-c003cb1ee3e15c2611547d0a0eb31d83&start=5559&end=6030","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3277217-c003cb1ee3e15c2611547d0a0eb31d83/thumbnail_5559000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6062600/Portland/Cumberland-County/Maine/Public-commenters-press-council-on-use-of-fund-balance-levy-buydown-and-shelter-policy","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6062600-e9d1533c06a5dc41956c140776fa5a65/orig.mp4?Expires=1771183316&Signature=ixgvF3NntBtBqjy487fTYo0sBVt5ttd-m2HQgjJHLiUg79hW7~oQ5Ns2xHjoZUbWpMY3KjzWwzywW~FCAoNPvpt~u03GrUN1PdP4J-54Z9qSVLWR5RniNVM~6MAxCkg46Q9sx296fQeqdbM44-CR5KRu5ymaZflr~wfAm86L4EqutblRXbo8HQYf6kR-1eUUf0QFqxHS6g5TDFlCyg9JJSif3gfUVMxbBQ~H20bpJILJxXFdfmPVsv088GB-2C7SZpjsd-5wfkzJa0jyLmg687Ay2CudbGDuultCbvk6C~772DN2FPAZRkAg9trqMyzTMszE~HGcAg2cZPhVs175Fg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Portland","date","2025-05-01T00:00:00Z","article","The finance committee held a public hearing on the FY26 budget after departmental presentations. Several community members spoke and urged the council to consider both shelter capacity and long‑term fiscal impacts when finalizing the budget.

Terrence Miller, advocacy director at Preble Street, supported using a portion of fund balance to avoid cuts to municipal services and urged the council not to reduce shelter capacity. \"The shelter's budget should not be balanced on the backs of homeless families and individuals,\" Miller said.

Resident Steven Scharf asked the committee for clearer, public details on the city’s full fund-balance numbers and the fiscal effects of recent year-end positions, and asked for more deliberation before final decisions.

Resident Darian Plant criticized the city manager’s proposed use of roughly $9 million in unassigned fund balance to lower the tax levy this year and asked the committee to disclose the long‑term cost of borrowing if capital projects proceed as proposed. \"You're proposing to spend $9,000,000 of our unassigned fund balance to temporarily buy down a staggering 15.1% tax levy increase,\" Plant said, calling that approach \"reckless\" and asking the committee for a full cost analysis of proposed bonds and long‑term interest costs.

Why it matters: The public hearing surfaced competing priorities: immediate service preservation (particularly shelter capacity) versus longer-term fiscal prudence and transparency about bond borrowing and the capital-improvement program.

Committee response and next steps: Finance staff said additional budget hearings and a scheduled second meeting in May will include remaining departments and further deliberations. Staff noted that certain municipal budget orders and a public hearing were postponed one meeting to allow alignment with state budget timing and further analysis.

Ending note: Speakers asked the committee for more transparent, itemized analysis of fund-balance uses and the projected lifetime cost of borrowing for CIP projects; committee members and staff confirmed they will continue follow-up work in upcoming meetings.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","City of Portland Meetings Portal Remote Finance Committee - May 01, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","During the finance committee’s public hearing on the FY26 budget, speakers urged both preservation of shelter beds and fiscal transparency. Commenters debated the city manager’s proposal to use fund balance to reduce the tax levy and asked for detailed cost analyses of proposed borrowing in the capital plan.","taxTitle","Portland, Cumberland County, Maine","taxId",2582,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6062606,"HHS budget review spotlights shelters, naloxone distribution and Behrend Center capacity plan",2416,3176000,5592000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3277217-c003cb1ee3e15c2611547d0a0eb31d83&start=3176&end=5592","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3277217-c003cb1ee3e15c2611547d0a0eb31d83/thumbnail_3176000.jpg","/articles/6062606/Portland/Cumberland-County/Maine/HHS-budget-review-spotlights-shelters-naloxone-distribution-and-Behrend-Center-capacity-plan","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6062606-7aecbafa93947a66b18e7205a7df014c/orig.mp4?Expires=1771183316&Signature=nv4N84yWgVeXsQgeEeG-iQDGayE3Fnmf9SYU111wAQXJ-qPr9GMlL-MYByGi-EQ7setuG9PK5ONPP3R43JLKAKRTtyIBvI-JYcbzX-bMTWGu0HK~HSKQyi5PW7ykxdUjImJ7oiGvZhi1l6pyjGCZvsk-z0ntx9WigoKzMotFP~LbIhpTzvCKxPM44HJWJ7krjGyMTspYvE62h-BXFILVjb7VKlB0eChd800yiXUI4AWP37eAq-WFPzCKyI5UTCczI6gIpeX0GUuF~9iTtVamMNcv1B-uDQkugU2KuAQL9rG75WmKvkwL0Uw7RX3z20pvqfIYLcnqE0rOVg1zBWPYTw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Health and Human Services Director Maggie McLaughlin told the finance committee that HHS’s FY26 budget focuses on sustaining core services amid constrained outside funding and that the department proposed no general new FTEs except revenue-generating roles.

McLaughlin described services across public health, social services (including the city‑run shelters), the Office of Elder Affairs and the Behrend Center skilled‑nursing facility. \"We are the only municipality in the state that operates shelters,\" McLaughlin said, noting the scale of the city’s work to shelter and house people.

Public health staff highlighted prevention and harm-reduction work: the city’s free clinic served about 156 patients last year, the public health division provided more than 3,000 vaccinations, and staff distributed more than 19,000 doses of naloxone, the director said. McLaughlin said the department chairs a broad health-equity alignment group and operates a large harm-reduction and syringe-exchange effort.

On homelessness and shelters: the social services division operates the Homeless Services Center (HSC), a family shelter and the 166 shelter (used recently for single asylum seekers). McLaughlin said the shelters and outreach teams sheltered more than 2,000 individuals in the past year and permanently housed more than 500; more than 90 percent of people placed remained housed after a year. The department said client expenses related to hotels will drop by roughly $3 million in FY26 because the city is no longer using hotels for sheltering, producing a $4 million reduction in client-expense line items overall.

Public commenters at the meeting urged the council not to reduce shelter capacity. Terrence Miller, advocacy director at Preble Street, said the city should reject any plan that would close shelter beds and urged the council to use fund balance to avoid cuts to municipal services. \"The shelter's budget should not be balanced on the backs of homeless families and individuals,\" Miller said.

Behrend Center: Marybeth Daigneault, Behrend Center administrator, said the facility is licensed for 219 beds but currently operates at about 109 census and plans to increase residents gradually toward 165 over the year; staffing and supply costs scale with census. Daigneault described vacancy-improvement efforts: turnover and vacancies have decreased since August, and the facility expects to add nursing and CNA staffing as census grows.

Why it matters: HHS operations comprise a large portion of municipal services tied to public health and homelessness; shelter capacity, funding assumptions and state/federal reimbursements will affect FY26 outcomes and the council’s budget decisions.

Next steps: Finance and HHS staff will continue to track grant availability and state reimbursement assumptions (including General Assistance rules set by state statute) and report further details during upcoming committee meetings; staff noted a prior FEMA grant intended for shelters was not available in this budget year.","The finance committee reviewed the Health and Human Services department budget. HHS leaders described shelter operations, outreach and housing outcomes, harm reduction work including naloxone distribution, reductions in some client expenses as hotel use ended, and plans to increase census at the Behrend Center skilled‑nursing facility.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6062611,"Police budget review: vacancies, Axon body‑camera software and early talks about community service officers",604,1597000,2201000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3277217-c003cb1ee3e15c2611547d0a0eb31d83&start=1597&end=2201","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3277217-c003cb1ee3e15c2611547d0a0eb31d83/thumbnail_1597000.jpg","/articles/6062611/Portland/Cumberland-County/Maine/Police-budget-review-vacancies-Axon-bodycamera-software-and-early-talks-about-community-service-officers","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6062611-92abb38704af28f635ae7a471f417ed3/orig.mp4?Expires=1771183316&Signature=FVQ133l9c6tnj~gHpW69SkCog9NbZuHpf1jbbz9Xiu0RGtHaxnkhUHvo-puI4vF8nUC8-zMId98kmVh-ezLEVWaigy4qVBFjZLvXQMJP~-q9pFODmx2c2SjLfA2wtzNsq1z0FK5vKTK9FQKA05x6xFUYAGrSlLGmf0oWhs6QVIoKYR4d-wbjoLmMzezt2tWmj88KSNTc1sb2-2RTOTj7ekw~TKKX0LSnxaAgvJPukbPzseRZenqzEu3X2R67QiHuo4uDrn286vq4ESe5KRDShJ8bAYSV2-6zkYmvZxphk2w4HylsiB2DXT1sxKrY7YHRqXKdAuQamOqU-JnMhxiGNQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Chief Du Bois and finance staff told the committee the police department’s FY26 operating request is about $20.3 million, roughly a 2.8 percent increase from last year; revenue offsets bring the net rise to under 2 percent.

The chief described staffing and recruitment: the department has an authorized sworn strength of 58 and 29 current sworn vacancies. He said three officers are hired and awaiting an August academy, one lateral transfer starts next week, and several candidates are in background checks. \"It's looking pretty strong in that regard,\" the chief said about the August academy candidate pool.

On technology and evidence storage: staff described the department’s body-camera contract with Axon and cloud storage on evidence.com. Chief Du Bois said the department will use Axon software that includes an automated, draft‑report feature based on body‑camera recordings. \"There's AI involved ... it creates a draft of a police report,\" the chief said, adding officers must review and finalize any automated drafts. Finance staff said the department compared time saved in trials and concluded the software was a net benefit after weighing cost and added patrol hours.

Committee members raised privacy and data-retention questions. One councilor asked whether raw video would be retained; staff replied that storage is cloud-based through evidence.com and that the vendor provides the storage and security safeguards in the contract.

Separately, the mayor and committee discussed a possible new position type — often described as a community service officer or quality-of-life unit — to handle non‑criminal, behavioral-health and community-stabilization tasks. Assistant city management and HR staff said they are exploring how such a role might be structured, union implications and costs, and they offered to return with scenarios. \"We are looking at it,\" an assistant city manager said, and added staff could come back to the finance committee or the Health and Human Services (HHS) committee with design options.

Why it matters: The police budget and staffing levels influence public safety response capacity; the introduction of specialized community-oriented roles could change how non‑criminal calls are handled.

Ending note: Committee members asked staff to prepare cross‑committee options for the potential community service officer pilot while continuing to monitor hiring and vacancy reductions ahead of the August academy.","The finance committee reviewed the Police Department's FY26 budget. Officials described recruitment progress for an August academy, current vacancies, the department’s use of Axon body camera tools (including automated draft report functionality) and a cross-committee effort to explore a community service officer role.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6062617,"Finance committee reviews Public Works budget; sewer and stormwater rates held flat",1243,169000,1412000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3277217-c003cb1ee3e15c2611547d0a0eb31d83&start=169&end=1412","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3277217-c003cb1ee3e15c2611547d0a0eb31d83/thumbnail_169000.jpg","/articles/6062617/Portland/Cumberland-County/Maine/Finance-committee-reviews-Public-Works-budget-sewer-and-stormwater-rates-held-flat","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6062617-bfedc055a82191f822cc67935e524ac4/orig.mp4?Expires=1771183316&Signature=Qf6JzShnoTb8rWg2cl0-6h5Ra3fHl9VAy-Xh4UyyT1RxZM7HB~Wy0RvHVMwADgWLHMDNYG6M5fZWgGZ-xtXXkGOwhteXFjOeagvyjbPUyQKVTQBMxuBHA6w1m-W8mhQxa~cc8yEcySk71rjoHCHHVxI7kt57kCRpsZuMRUFVIZPLCRfAe~JtW7OkXYUKwv70OGg5or5EZ9PKeicF-gW5KamRHTxVHsKf73fmyPqHWMFLnX0mlhJJCJBsF2Z9QPNdfRDqPRHlJvXD0ROx-nPTMR3wD-Nyhh5B1p~erNz5XdCxzaDABA2kKABm5rM3gUT3IgvlTnHFFUjg6BJxhHtP~w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Public Works Director Mike Murray told the finance committee that his department’s FY26 general fund request is $18.87 million, a roughly $387,000 (2 percent) increase from the previous year, and that revenues in the department are essentially flat.

Murray walked committee members through division-level changes and savings, including removal of a vacant deputy director position from the FY26 submission and contract reductions in solid waste after the city ended use of an outside collection contract. He also described planned investments in downtown maintenance and two additional full-time positions for the downtown district, half-funded by the Portland Downtown Improvement District.

Why it matters: Public Works runs core city services — street maintenance, traffic signals, solid waste, island services, fleet and winter operations — and changes in its budget affect everyday city operations and resident services.

Murray said the department will publish its schedule for street paving and sidewalk repairs within the week so councilors and neighborhood associations can share the information with residents. \"We can have that out within the week,\" Murray said.

Staff highlighted several cost-saving moves: eliminating the vacant deputy director role (Murray said long-serving operations staff are covering the duties for now), buying salt and de-icing materials ahead of the season, and locking in more favorable fuel pricing for diesel and gasoline for the fleet. Murray said diesel was locked in at about $2.97 per gallon versus roughly $3.75 last year.

Solid waste payroll reflects a midyear wage adjustment for labor/trades positions; contractual services in that division declined because the city will no longer use an outside contractor for one route after June 30. Winter operations payroll increases are driven largely by overtime tied to the wage adjustments. Island services costs rose in part because a barging provider raised its rates, Murray said.

On utilities: Brendan O’Connell, the city’s finance director, said both the sewer utility fund and the stormwater service charge will see no rate increase in FY26. He attributed that in part to the Portland Water District returning a portion of prior assessments after some district capital projects moved more slowly than planned. O’Connell said debt-service timing and slower-than-anticipated capital spending helped keep the stormwater budget flat.

Committee reaction and next steps: Committee members thanked Public Works staff for identifying savings. Murray and finance staff said sewer/stormwater activity and schedules will continue to be monitored and that the department will post operational schedules and project lists for residents.

Ending note: The finance committee will continue budget hearings; Public Works staff answered follow-up questions and were thanked for the presentation before the committee moved to consider the police and HHS budgets later in the meeting.","The City of Portland’s finance committee reviewed the Public Works departmental budget and utility funds for FY26. Public Works Director Mike Murray described savings and staffing adjustments, and city staff said there will be no rate increases for the sewer utility fund or the stormwater service charge this year.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Public commenters press council on use of fund balance, levy buy‑down and shelter policy

HHS budget review spotlights shelters, naloxone distribution and Behrend Center capacity plan

Police budget review: vacancies, Axon body‑camera software and early talks about community service officers

Finance committee reviews Public Works budget; sewer and stormwater rates held flat