The Jackson City Council on Sept. 10 approved the city's fiscal year 2025'2026 municipal budget after a lengthy review and a series of amendments that added staff pay raises, new funding for public-works equipment and contingency funds for public safety.

Council members debated multiple line items and amendments over more than two hours before adopting the budget as amended. The council added a targeted pay-raise plan for lower-paid employees, approved a $1.5 million allocation for street-cleanup and blight-control equipment (in addition to already-budgeted equipment), and approved conditional allocations for police and fire to be released after the city's audit and a firm fund-balance report.

Why it matters: The budget sets Jackson City's priorities for the coming year, including operations, public works, and public-safety commitments, and several council amendments are intended to address long-standing infrastructure and staffing concerns.

Council action and key amendments

- Pay raises: Councilman Stokes moved an amendment asking the administration to begin pay raises for city employees, with a tiered approach (higher percentage for lower-paid employees). "We must give these employees a pay raise," Councilman Stokes said. The council voted in favor of the amendment (recorded vote: 7-0). The council left amount specifics to the administration's discretion and asked finance to return a memo with cost estimates.

- Public works equipment / blight control: Councilman Hartley moved to allocate $2.5 million from the general fund for street cleanup and blight-control equipment but amended that figure after administration review to $1,500,000 plus already-budgeted items. Administration said it could locate $1,500,000 for those purposes; council members discussed making the investment recurring. The transcript records council direction to allocate $1,500,000 and for administration to target it toward cleanup and abandoned-property work; a formal roll-call tally on that specific amendment is not specified in the transcript.

- Police and fire contingency: Council members proposed finding up to $2,000,000 from fund balance for police and fire once the audit completes and a firm fund-balance report is available. The council approved the concept and recorded a favorable vote (recorded tally reported as 7-0 when the amendment passed).

- Festival and special-events funding: Council members discussed restoring and verifying a previously discussed $200,000 line for the mayor's office to support cultural programs and events such as the Dog Gone Festival and the Jackson Music Awards. Sharon Timbs, deputy chief financial officer, said she would verify whether the amount was in the proposed budget: "I will ensure that it is in this budget," Timbs said.

Other substantive points in debate

- Parking meters contract: Administration staff told the council the parking-meter arrangement appears to require repayment of the private company's capital investment before net revenue accrues to the city. An administration speaker said, "the money we're making now is going to pay for the actual parking meters...we're repaying whatever the capital investment was for the meter company before we're generating any revenue for ourselves." The council directed legal to review the contract and return options in October.

- Public-works staffing and equipment: Council members repeatedly emphasized the need to rebuild heavy equipment, obtain heavy-equipment licenses and CDLs for staff, and reassign Parks & Recreation crews to assist public works. Administration said it would present proposals for training and a pay-back agreement for equipment/license funding.

- Facilities and HVAC: Council members questioned why money budgeted for repairs and HVAC replacement was not being used to address immediate building problems, and asked administration to coordinate with the Jackson Redevelopment Authority (JRA) on buildings the city occupies and where JRA controls capital decisions.

- Zoo and Livingston Park water bills: Administration described leaks and a continuously running hydrant at the zoo that drives high water costs and recommended taking certain animal exhibits temporarily offline while repairs are planned. Staff estimated repairs and structural improvements could cost between about $400,000 and $1 million depending on scope; staff suggested exploring bond funds or state wildlife grants for larger work.

- Animal control: Council members discussed outsourcing animal control (an item that appears in the budget lines). A separate motion to increase the animal-control line to $468,000 failed on a split vote (vote reported as 3-1-3 in the transcript and recorded as failed).

Votes at a glance

- Final adoption of the FY25-26 municipal budget: Approved as amended (transcript shows the budget was put to a final vote and passed; a roll-call tally for the final overall adoption is not specified in the transcript). Note: individual amendment tallies are noted where the transcript recorded them.

Nut graf: The adopted budget reflects council priorities on pay equity, infrastructure and public safety, but several amendments rely on administration follow-up (cost memos, contract reviews and the city audit) before funding is released.

What happens next: City finance staff and administration were tasked to (1) verify that the $200,000 events line appears in the final budget; (2) provide a memo with the estimated cost of the approved pay raises; (3) have legal review the parking-meter contract and return options in October; and (4) return proposals and implementation steps for public-works equipment purchases, training, and any required procurement.

Speakers quoted in this article are drawn only from the council meeting transcript and are identified at first reference with role.

Ending: The council concluded the special session after the final vote and adjourned the meeting.