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Dunedin reviews draft 2026 commission budget; civic partner grants, insurance and IT changes noted
Summary
Finance staff presented the City Commission’s draft 2026 budget at the July 1 workshop, citing an approximate 11% rise in insurance costs, an IT-services reduction tied to device strategy, a $9,000 proposed increase in grant funding for nonprofits and a process review for civic partner allocations.
City Finance Director Les Tyler and Budget Manager Jean Horswater reviewed the City Commission’s draft fiscal 2026 budget at the Dunedin City Commission workshop on July 1, highlighting modest overall change from 2025 and several line-item adjustments affecting insurance, IT services and nonprofit grants.
Tyler told the commission the insurance estimate in the 2026 draft is about an 11% increase over 2025 — “the insurance cost has gone up in 2026 compared to 2025 by about 11%, or about $5,000,” he said — and that the total proposed commission budget is $619,785, roughly $95 higher than 2025.
Tyler and Horswater walked commissioners through exhibits showing 2024 actuals, 2025-to-date results and the 2026 proposal. Key changes called out included a $13,300 (19%) decline for the internal IT services charge driven in part by a planned shift to laptop-plus-docking-station setups (fewer device replacements over time), a $2,500 increase in the holiday banquet line and a $1,200 increase in employee gift-card funding. Other current charges fell by about $3,550 in 2026 largely because a Sister City program budgeted at $4,750 in 2025 is not in the 2026 draft.
On aid to private organizations, Tyler said the draft increases that pot by $9,000 (from $208,000 to $217,000) and that staff received roughly five more grant applications this year than last. Tyler described the subcommittee that reviews applications as “the city manager, myself, and Phyllis Gorshi, the library director,” and said the subcommittee will meet in July to vet submissions before an August 6 workshop for commission review.
Horswater described the civic partners arrangement — a separate line-item set aside for three longstanding local partners — as designed to reduce competition among organizations that historically relied on city funding. She said the subcommittee reviews prior-year spending, reserves and program quality when recommending awards and that staff often holds back about $10,000 from the grant pot to accommodate midyear requests.
Commissioners asked for clarifications about eligibility (some applicants are countywide and must show Dunedin impact), why some organizations receive line-item civic-partner funding, and whether civic-partner amounts have trended down over time (Tyler said the contribution has declined from roughly $55,000 previously to about $37,000 in recent budgets). The commission also confirmed a small correction to a percentage-change calculation in the staffing exhibit and signaled consensus to have staff make that correction and proceed with the subcommittee review process.
No formal commission ordinance or vote was adopted during the workshop; staff requested commissioner approval to proceed with the minor exhibit correction and the committee review timeline and commissioners signaled consensus to proceed.
Staff said the full draft budget and grant recommendations will be presented at future workshops and that the commission will consider formal adoption on its regular schedule.
