Council probes Department of Administration growth as DOA absorbs new programs and staff

The Finance & Personnel Committee examined the Department of Administration (DOA) proposed 2026 budget and questioned the department’s expanded scope and personnel growth during a detailed presentation by DOA director Preston Cole and budget staff.

Budget analysts told the committee DOA’s 2026 proposed budget is up about 1.5% from the 2025 adopted level and that the department is showing a net increase of four positions and about two full‑time equivalents. Sarah Osborne of the Budget and Fiscal Policy office said some changes reflect funded grant positions and internal reclassifications; the operating increases are concentrated largely in Information Technology Management Division (ITMD) contracts and license costs.

Council members raised broader governance questions. Several aldermen, including Alderman Rafael (sic) Speicher and Alderman Scott Spiker, asked why DOA now oversees functions that previously reported elsewhere and whether consolidating units into DOA creates real savings or simply added another supervisory layer. "We are no longer just an internal operation," Director Cole said, describing DOA’s expansion into field operations and programs such as Vision 0, early childhood, and violence prevention.

Aldermen asked for examples showing tangible savings or efficiency gains from the consolidation. Director Cole said many costs were already sunk in internal service units and the administration’s view is that consolidating programs into DOA lets the city deliver additional community services while leveraging existing administrative capacity. Council members requested a written analysis of realized and projected savings tied to consolidation and to see year‑over‑year headcount and salary comparisons from 2020 onward.

Other questions included the funding source for several positions that appear in 2026, movement of specific grant‑funded roles (for example an epidemiologist and program assistant budgeted to move into the director’s office), and why some positions landed in DOA rather than the mayor’s office. Budget staff said several positions are grant‑funded and that the budget as proposed reflected technical position placements in the ordinance.

Committee members asked legislative staff and the administration for a clearer breakdown of which positions are levy‑funded, grant‑funded, or one‑time additions; they also asked for documentation of the savings the administration said consolidation would bring.

The committee did not make a final decision at the hearing; members flagged the DOA briefing for follow‑up and asked staff to provide the requested comparisons and fiscal notes before budget adoption.