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Councilors split over nine proposed new positions and near-4% levy increase
Summary
At a Newport budget workshop, staff proposed nine new positions costing roughly $1.0 million, and councilors debated whether to approve the hires alongside a proposed 3.95% levy increase; police leadership called the deputy chief position "urgent."
City administration presented nine proposed new positions for FY26 and the budget discussion at the workshop focused on whether those hires should be funded now or deferred given a proposed 3.95% levy increase.
Staff described the proposed positions and their cost grouping: four general-fund positions (deputy police chief, code enforcement officer, assistant building inspector, public services laborer) at about $481,000 in salary and benefits; four enterprise-fund positions (utility GIS/field specialist, capital project engineering manager and two utility-related roles) totaling roughly $246,000; a superintendent of the parking authority at about $166,000; and a deputy harbor master at about $116,000. The city manager noted that some enterprise-funded positions are expected to be borne by ratepayers or users of those enterprise services.
Councilors expressed concern about both the scale of the tax increase and optics of some proposed salary levels. One councilor said the $116,296 figure for a code-enforcement position was higher than the highest-paid teacher with benefits and that asking taxpayers for a near-maximum levy increase while adding positions would be difficult to justify to constituents. Others argued the positions respond to documented operational needs and to council requests: the deputy police chief was described as a holdover from prior budget cycles and supported by the police chief; code enforcement and building-inspection hires were framed as necessary to address backlogs and improve revenue generation and enforcement capacity.
Police Chief Duffy told the council the deputy chief role was necessary for modern police administration and seasonal-tourism operational demands, saying he would "fall on the side that it's an urgent situation." Chief Duffy described the deputy as second-in-command to manage daily operations, professional standards, training, tourism response coordination and to relieve administrative burden from the chief so the department can meet operational and accreditation requirements.
Staff and several councilors discussed alternatives including delaying some hires, splitting capital funding over multiple years, and raising fees (permits, parking, maritime) where legally permissible to offset costs. Staff agreed to pursue fee adjustments where feasible and to provide clearer estimates of revenue offsets from positions that have a revenue-generation element (for example, building inspections and code enforcement).
Why it matters: The hires would add recurring salary and benefit obligations to the FY26 budget; some would be paid from operational funds that ultimately are supported by taxpayers, ratepayers, or users. The debate balances service needs, enforcement capacity, and the political sensitivity of a near-maximum levy increase.
What is not decided: No formal vote was taken on the positions in the workshop. Councilors requested more data on potential fee adjustments and revenue offsets and indicated some positions could be considered individually rather than as a full package.
Ending note: Staff said some positions were driven by council feedback and that a clean budget reflecting any council direction will be provided before the June 11 meeting.
