Portsmouth council reviews FY2026 reconciliation; schools, retiree supplement funded, paving reduced

Portsmouth City Council members spent a work session reviewing changes between the city manager's proposed fiscal 2026 budget and the version the council will consider for adoption, with staff highlighting added funding for Portsmouth Public Schools, a retiree supplement and new support for community programs alongside reductions to paving and parts of the Department of Public Utilities.

Why it matters: The reconciliation affects schools, public works priorities and several one-time and recurring line items that frame next year's spending choices and potential trade-offs with capital and employee pay decisions.

Trey Draper, who presented the reconciliation, told the council the adopted changes include $1,500,000 in additional funding for Portsmouth Public Schools, described there as bringing the school contribution roughly 10% higher than last year. Draper also reported a retiree supplement of about $150,000 and new funding of $175,000 for several community programs named in the presentation. He said the council's packet shows the schools' contribution at approximately $82,800,000.

To offset those increases, Draper said staff reduced the citywide paving allocation by $700,000 and eliminated several items, including an assistant director position in property management and certain Department of Public Utilities programs such as a meter replacement initiative. Draper told the council that projected revenue adjustments include an increased transfer from the Department of Public Utilities and projected speed-camera fines of roughly $312,000.

Council members asked several clarifying questions. Vice Mayor Moody asked which paving projects would be cut; Draper said specific projects had not yet been selected and crews will reprioritize the paving list when conditions are assessed. Councilwoman Thomas and others pressed for more information about how school funding decisions relate to unspent balances and vacancies.

Draper noted a correction to materials provided earlier: a fund balance appropriation that had appeared as a decrease was actually an increase (from about $7.5 million to just over $8 million) and invited questions on the reconciliation.

Process and timing: Council and staff repeatedly stressed that the work session was a review and that any formal budget vote would occur at the council's regular meeting the next day. City Manager Steven Carter told council members he would notify them by phone and email before the formal vote if any negotiated changes with the schools were finalized.

Ending note: The work session left key allocations in place while flagging where staff will return with refined project lists (for paving) or final figures (for transfers and fines) before the council's adoption vote.