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Village staff launches 2026 budget kickoff; long‑range plan review set for May
Summary
Staff opened the 2026 budget process with a long‑range planning timeframe, departmental reviews this summer, and an emphasis on service‑level options; trustees asked staff to provide departmental option sets for potential service changes.
Village staff opened the preliminary work on the 2026 budget, outlining a timetable and topics for the coming months and asking trustees to begin considering revenue and service‑level options.
Rebecca (finance/staff) reviewed the schedule: a long‑range financial plan review will be presented to the board in early May and departmental financial reviews are planned between July and August. The departmental reviews will include service‑level analyses and staffing benchmarks; staff said departments will be asked to provide options where feasible so the board can evaluate tradeoffs in a thoughtful way rather than making snap reductions.
Trustees emphasized transparency and timing. One trustee asked that each department present option sets (for example, option A/B/C) to make it easier for the board and public to consider service changes. Trustees also asked that the long‑range plan and budget materials clearly show the revenue impact of new charges adopted in 2025 — in particular the new streetlight charge and the vehicle fee — and provide context about outstanding debt and capital timing.
Staff said these items will be included in the May long‑range plan review and that the schedule gives more runway for considered discussions about staffing and service levels than the last budget cycle. Departmental reviews will feed into the fall budget process and the board will make policy choices informed by the long‑range analysis and department option sets.
