Council questions insurance deductibles, engineering funds, consulting fees and trash contract in 2026 budget review

Councilors at the Oct. 23 Committee of the Whole meeting reviewed several specific 2026 budget line items and asked staff for additional detail and reallocation options.

On insurance, the controller explained an increase in the controller’s “other” line item to $83,000 reflected a roughly $70,000 rise tied to property‑claim deductibles processed through Liberty Mutual Insurance. "The increase represents expenses for insurance property claim deductibles for Liberty Mutual Insurance," the controller said, adding that going forward departments that incur claims will be charged from their own budgets rather than the controller’s line.

Councilors suggested shifting claim payments to the department responsible for the loss to increase accountability. The controller and council members discussed moving the $70,000 out of the controller’s line and into the department budgets that will bear future liability.

Street engineering and repairs also drew scrutiny. The council reviewed an engineering line that increases to $700,000 for 2026; staff said they would leave $500,000 for engineering design and inspection related to CCMG 2026 and move $200,000 to utilities. A streets department request to reallocate line items for repair and maintenance was noted as consistent with prior practice.

Financial consulting was another focus. The controller’s response said money was moved between line items to cover invoices for Baker Tilly and Crow; councilors asked for the Crow contract to be provided to legal so the council could see scope and cost. One councilor said, “If you can get with legal, get the contract so that we know what we’re looking at in the budget,” and asked staff to deliver it prior to the next meeting.

The meeting also reviewed the city’s contract with Priority for residential trash service. Renee, a city staff member, said the city signed the Priority contract in November 2023 and that an automatic rate increase is built into the contract. “We signed the contract with Priority in November 2023,” she said. The contract includes annual rate adjustments; the transcript shows the 2026 payout to Priority budgeted at $2,432,924.74 and the council had rounded the number to a $2.5 million budget line for 2026 to allow for the December 2025 rate change to $15.85 per unit.

Councilors also discussed heavy trash collection frequency (currently twice a year) and community concerns that heavy‑trash service is used unevenly across neighborhoods. Some councilors said usage patterns and rental concentrations drive differing community needs.

Other smaller items noted in the meeting: an increase in human resources professional services from $30,000 to $36,000 to cover diversity‑supplier and language services the city currently uses, and movement of $200,000 between consulting and other controller line items to cover outstanding invoices.

Why it matters: These line‑item questions affect the general fund and how costs are allocated across departments. Councilors said clearer contract visibility and line‑item accountability are needed before finalizing the 2026 budget.

What’s next: Councilors asked staff to provide contract documents (Crow, Baker Tilly), a list of departments that will carry insurance claim costs, and confirmation of the Priority contract rate schedule and 2026 payment calculations.