Fort Lauderdale presents preliminary budget, Stantec forecast projects long‑term gap without new revenue or cuts

Fort Lauderdale city staff and the Budget Advisory Board presented a preliminary fiscal 2026 general fund budget June 17 that keeps the millage rate unchanged and recommends directing one‑time PFAS settlement proceeds to capital and an emergency management reserve while highlighting a likely need for future revenue increases or spending cuts.

The presentation by the acting city manager and Office of Management and Budget staff emphasized that the preliminary budget is balanced for fiscal year 2026 at the current millage of 4.1193, supported by a stronger‑than‑expected certified taxable value increase (the Property Appraiser’s June 1 values showed an 8.15% rise). The city manager said officials intend to treat unpredictable receipts — including a PFAS settlement payment — as one‑time resources for capital projects such as public safety facilities and information‑technology investments, and proposed setting aside $4.8 million of PFAS funds for an emergency management reserve.

A separate presentation by financial consultant Stantec sketched a 10‑year outlook showing that, even with the improved near‑term revenue picture, ongoing drivers such as public safety staffing, pension and retirement cost changes, debt service for planned capital projects and the scheduled expiration of certain grants (including SAFER firefighter grant funding) will produce growing deficits later in the decade unless the city takes action. Stantec’s model indicated a potential need for an additional roughly 0.55 mill in future years to maintain minimum fund balance targets over the 10‑year horizon; staff and Stantec framed that as an illustrative order‑of‑magnitude, not a firm recommendation.

The Budget Advisory Board reported its formal recommendations to the commission: support for no millage increase for fiscal 2026, support for adopting the fire assessment at full cost recovery (an increase shown in the preliminary budget), and support for establishment of a targeted emergency reserve. Gary Brown, chair of the board, told the commission the board had also urged the city to look for event sponsorships and other non‑tax revenues to offset public‑safety overtime tied to large special events.

Department directors and commissioners asked for follow‑up information during the workshop. Commissioners pressed staff for detail on how the proposed emergency reserve would be governed, whether PFAS funds could be used to pay debt to lower long‑term taxpayer costs, and how the city would treat requests for targeted exemptions such as a potential disabled‑veterans exemption to the proposed fire assessment. Laura Reese, acting assistant city manager, and Yvette Matthews, acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, confirmed staff analysis showed an exemption for U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)‑exempt properties would reduce annual revenue by roughly $153,800 if applied at the highest current levels of VA exemption in the city and could be accommodated in the general fund with an offsetting reduction in revenue.

The presentation also highlighted large ongoing and proposed expenditures in the CIP — notably capital for three fire stations and a prospective new downtown EMS/Fire substation — and called out the structural pressure created when temporary grant funding (for example, SAFER firefighter grant positions) ends.

The workshop did not adopt a final budget; staff will deliver a proposed budget later in the process for the commission’s formal adoption. Stantec and staff recommended the commission consider a combination of options — targeted revenue increases, continued use of one‑time funds for one‑time capital, service and efficiency changes, and increased sponsorships or fee realignments for special events — to address the projected gap.