Wauwatosa officials preview 2026 operating budget; municipal tax bill estimate rises about $176

The Wauwatosa Committee of the Whole received a high-level review of the proposed 2026 operating budget Wednesday night, Sept. 30, where Finance Director John Regini said the average municipal portion of a Wauwatosa property tax bill is currently estimated to rise 8.21%, about $176, pending completion of the city’s revaluation and the Board of View process.

Regini told the committee the estimate is preliminary and subject to change as the revaluation and the Board of View are finalized. “As of about 6 hours ago, our estimate right now is this average tax bill for a Wauwatosa resident for the municipal portion of the bill will go up by 8.21% or approximate $176,” he said.

The increase reflects multiple moving parts: a proposed property tax levy increase of roughly 2% (shown as 2.01% in the staff chart), an assessed value increase of nearly 50% and an estimated 31% drop in the tax rate. Regini said the revaluation has shifted taxable value toward residential property and away from commercial property, which affects how the levy change translates into individual bills.

Why it matters: property taxes account for roughly 69% of the city’s general fund revenue, Regini said, and about 73% of city spending funds departments that deliver daily public-facing services — police, fire, public works, the library and development services. Those constraints limit other local revenue options and shape trade-offs officials made while closing the 2026 gap.

Regini summarized how staff closed an initial $1.7 million shortfall between a June projection and the proposed 2026 budget. Key elements included department-directed reductions of about $810,000 (the single largest reduction being more than $500,000 from the fire department’s “cost to continue”), higher-than-expected interest earnings of about $900,000, and roughly $750,000 in benefit-related savings compared with June forecasts. Operating expenditures rose about $521,000 versus forecast, Regini said, and staff included a remaining “plug” amount of approximately $141,000 as an unexplained balancing line in the high-level presentation.

Service and staffing effects

Regini said the 2026 draft preserves many services but includes several changes with direct effects on residents. Yard-waste collection will remain April–October but shift from twice monthly to once monthly pickup; residents may use the city drop-off site free of charge (it was previously $5) or purchase a wheeled yard-waste cart to store material between collections. Regini said the yard-waste change saves about $90,000.

For public safety, the draft budget includes one unfilled frontline firefighter FTE that will remain unfunded for 2026. Regini warned this contributes to more frequent “brownouts,” periods when an apparatus runs short-staffed or is taken out of service; he said the city had experienced about 14 such events so far this year. Regini also said the fire budget assumes the city prevails in pending arbitration with the fire union; if the union prevails, further adjustments will be required.

The police department’s proposed contract for body-worn cameras, interview-room systems and digital evidence management would cost about $170,000 in 2026. Regini described the vendor Axon as one of “very few providers” and said the system includes automated redaction tools and other efficiencies. The police budget also includes funding for a second drone to provide redundancy; the department currently operates one drone.

On personnel costs, the city is proposing a 3% cost-of-living adjustment for non-represented employees. Regini noted the Wisconsin Retirement System rate (WRS) employer contribution would rise from 6.95% to 7.2%, and staff expect roughly a 4% increase in healthcare premiums with no plan design changes.

Capital and utilities outlook

Regini said the 2026 budget as presented does not account for several major, unresolved items: a possible fire department merger, recent flooding and possible library and city-hall renovation projects. Flood-related decisions depend on a FEMA determination about local-government eligibility for public assistance; Regini said FEMA had approved assistance for private homeowners and businesses but had not yet decided on local-government eligibility.

Regarding capital projects, Regini said the capital budget work is running roughly a month behind because of flooding. He said planned 2026 capital projects generally remain on track, but the city expects pressure on the water utility budget in later years. Two large state-led road projects — Highway 181 and North Avenue — include more than $17 million of water-main work, Regini said, and the city typically budgets about $10 million for water-utility capital across a five-year window; he said those constraints will force difficult choices and likely higher utility rate increases in later years.

Budget process next steps

Regini outlined an October schedule of Financial Affairs Committee reviews of departmental budgets and said staff will present a Committee of the Whole item on the capital budget tentatively on Oct. 28 (more likely Nov. 11, he said) and aim for common-council action on Nov. 18. He asked alderpersons to notify staff if they want departments not listed on the review schedule to present.

What officials said

Alder Fransen and other alderpersons thanked staff for the presentation and asked clarifying questions about arbitration, the yard-waste savings and the timing and drivers of “net new construction.” Regini and other staff said net new construction that affects a given budget year is driven by building activity in the prior year; staff estimated net new construction for the city this cycle at roughly 2% on a conservative basis but cautioned estimates are imprecise.

Ending note

City staff emphasized the difficulty of balancing a municipal budget under current constraints and the importance of federal, state and local funding decisions that remain unresolved. Regini closed by thanking department staff for the reductions and trade-offs they proposed during the budget process.