Clayton officials present FY 2025–26 budget with proposed 49¢ tax rate; public hearing opened

Town Manager Rich Capold opened the Town of Clayton’s first public hearing on the fiscal year 2025–26 budget on May 20, presenting a manager-recommended spending plan and asking council to review staff recommendations.

Budget Manager Todd Milton told the council the recommended general fund is balanced at roughly $67,200,000 and that the town manager is proposing a 49¢ per $100 valuation tax rate for FY 2026. Milton said the recommendation also includes a 10.2% combined water and sewer rate increase (about 6% for water and 12.5% for sewer), a 2% electric rate increase, and capital outlay in the general fund of roughly $7,900,000, including $7,500,000 set aside for land banking for economic development.

The budget presentation laid out why the package matters. "The budget process is one of the most important responsibilities we have in local government," Capold said, noting the town is operating three major funds totaling more than $100 million. Milton said staff moved to a base budgeting technique using three-year averages to constrain line items and began…