Merriam council votes to exceed revenue-neutral rate and adopts 2026 budget

MERRIAM, Kan. ' The Merriam City Council on Aug. 25, 2025 voted 7-0 to approve a resolution to exceed the county'calculated revenue-neutral rate and then adopted the city's 2026 operating budget.

The action sets the proposed mill rate at 26.412 mills, above the county'provided revenue-neutral figure of 25.855 mills, a difference staff said would bring in roughly $166,000 more in property tax revenue than a strictly revenue-neutral levy.

Director of Finance Brian Borth told the council the county estimate equates to "$7,700,000" in total property-tax revenue and that the staff'recommended rate to maintain current services is "26.412." He said the difference between the revenue-neutral rate and staff's proposal is "about a $166,000." Borth also said the typical Merriam home'the example he used moved from an assessed value of about $300,000 last year to about $310,000 this year, producing most of the increase residents see on tax bills.

The council then approved the city's 2026 operating budget. City staff presented the budget summary as an all-funds package with roughly $40 million in revenues and $45 million in expenditures across all funds; the administration said the general-fund policies would still be met and that the proposed operating budget was balanced without drawing on fund balance. Borth told council the budget includes a full-time technology specialist, expanded IT contracts, a roughly $11.5 million capital improvement plan and a projected ending fund balance of about $9 million, or roughly 38.3% of revenues.

During the public hearing that preceded the vote, two residents expressed concern about rising property taxes. Sandra Baldwin, who gave her address as 9503 W. 40th Terrace, said she had appealed her valuation to the county without success and described personal financial strain. Billy Crone of 6633 Webb Street said he "objects to exceeding the revenue neutral rate this year" and urged council to reduce taxes instead of providing incentives to developers.

Council members pressed staff about how property-value increases affect individual tax bills and how the mill rate change translates to household bills. Borth said the staff'estimate for the average home would increase annual property tax by about $19 under the proposed rate compared with the revenue-neutral rate, not a monthly amount.

The council vote to adopt the budget followed standard motion procedures; the clerk recorded the final vote on adoption as 7-0.

Looking ahead, staff said the council will continue review of the capital improvement plan and that more detailed budget hearings and line-item discussion will follow as part of the public hearing schedule.

Ending: The adopted budget and mill rate set city revenue projections for 2026 and allow staff to finalize worksheets submitted to state agencies; residents with valuation or tax questions were directed to the Johnson County appraiser for assessment appeals and to city Community Development staff for information on available property-tax rebate grants.