Miami Gardens council approves 2025-26 millage rate and budget, allocates funds for police, infrastructure and housing aid

The Miami Gardens City Council on Sept. 9 adopted a proposed operating millage rate of 6.9363 and approved the city's fiscal year 2025-26 budget following a first public hearing and unanimous votes by the seven-member council.

City Manager Biesecker presented the proposed millage and budget and recommended the millage rate, saying, "With that, mister mayor, I recommend the budget millage rate of 6.9363 for the year of 20 25 20 26." The proposal includes a voter-approved debt service millage of 0.4331 for an aggregate millage of 7.3694.

The vote followed procedural motions to defer the millage until after discussion of the budget and then to recall and vote. The council recorded unanimous votes in favor of both the millage and the budget.

Why it matters: the adopted millage and budget set tax rates and spending priorities for the city's next fiscal year, affecting public-safety staffing, infrastructure projects such as road and stormwater work, lighting district upgrades, and housing and homelessness services.

Most important items and figures

- Millage: The council approved an operating millage rate of 6.9363, described in the hearing as about 7.9% above the rollback rate; the voter-approved debt service millage is 0.4331, for a total rate of 7.3694.

- Budget adoption: The council approved the FY 2025-26 budget (first reading/public hearing) by roll call; the ordinance was passed by a 7-0 vote.

- Infrastructure: Deputy City Manager Craig Clay told the council that last year the city started about $12.3 million in infrastructure projects and that the new program will increase by about $2 million for projects starting this year; "So in total, you're looking at about $27,000,000 that we will be spending on infrastructure projects," he said. The council was directed to the budget sections for transportation (starting p.101) and stormwater (starting p.113) for line-item detail.

- Street lighting: Council members pressed for faster repairs and better photometric performance from Florida Power & Light (FPL). Clay reported FPL had completed work in all but four of 27 lighting districts and that the city will commission a follow-up photometric study; if lights do not meet standards the city expects to add poles (initial pole spacing was about 220 feet; study indicates 120'—0 feet spacing would be preferable). Council members asked for a special workshop with FPL and a drive-through of dark blocks so the utility can see problem areas firsthand.

- Community development and housing funds: The budget includes a $396,000 allocation from the federal HOME Investment Partnership (HOME) program, with most of that money designated for tenant-based rental assistance and homeless support services; Clay said roughly 5% of that HOME allocation would cover administration and the remainder would fund rental assistance and rehabilitation. The city also expects $514,000 from the State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) program and a slight decrease of roughly $10,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds from the prior year. The council noted a separate $500,000 community-benefit allocation tied to Formula 1 that the city has added to local funding. The council cited a combined community-development-related total of about $22.3 million in the materials discussed at the hearing.

- Police budget and staffing: Officials described the police department budget for 2026 as approximately $66 million, which council members characterized in the meeting as roughly a 10% increase from the prior year. The department has 222 sworn positions, described as "about a 180 plus police officers, 30 plus sergeants, and then the balance are commanders, captains, majors, and above." Council members pressed for expedited hiring practices and a staffing process that shifts non-swearned duties to civilians so more sworn officers can be assigned to patrol. City management said it has already begun revising hiring processes and will pursue further recruitment steps once the budget takes effect Oct. 1.

- Homelessness response: Clay said the city plans to use "the lion's share" of the $396,000 HOME allocation to address homelessness, focusing on tenant-based rental assistance for people facing eviction and other short-term crises. The council asked that the community-development department's allocations reflect documented needs and said staff used recent call data to guide funding priorities.

Council process and next steps

Council members commended staff and department heads for the budget work and for aligning spending with the city's strategic plan. The council scheduled the final public hearing on the millage rate and budget for Sept. 24, 2025, at 5:01 p.m. at City Hall.

Votes and formal actions from the Sept. 9 meeting included deferrals to allow discussion, recall motions, and final adoption votes. The millage resolution and the FY2025-26 budget ordinance were both approved by 7-0 votes.

The meeting produced several follow-up directions rather than new policy language: staff were asked to arrange a workshop with Florida Power & Light that includes a photometric review and a drive-through of problem areas; staff were also directed to continue work on hiring and recruitment changes in the police department and to implement the budget allocations with reporting aligned to the city's strategic plan.