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Sanford proposes $224.6 million FY2026 budget; property tax, personnel costs drive increases
Summary
City staff presented a balanced FY2026 proposed budget of $224.6 million to the Sanford City Commission, driven largely by personnel cost increases and a projected $46 million in property tax revenue at the current millage rate.
The Sanford City Commission on July 10 reviewed a proposed fiscal year 2026 budget totaling $224.6 million, city staff said, with $85 million in the general fund and about $46 million expected from property taxes if the commission maintains the current millage rate of 7.325%.
City Manager Mr. Benepart opened the work session by describing the document and schedule; "The proposed budget is balanced in that it only expands the amount of monies that we anticipate receiving over the next year," he said. Finance Director Cindy Lindsey walked commissioners through revenue and expenditure outlooks and the public hearing schedule leading to final adoption in September.
The budget presentation highlighted that roughly $6.9 million of the year-over-year change is personnel-related. The proposal includes a 3% cost-of-living adjustment for nonunion employees and a pool to cover a 1% merit increase. Police salaries will increase in line with a 4% contract adjustment; fire negotiators remain in discussion, staff said.
Lindsey noted the revenue mix and adjustments since staff began modeling the budget: "Altogether, the budget is going up $6,900,000 — $6,000,000 of it is from property taxes," she said. Other revenue and expenditure line items include expected increases in utility taxes and building permits, a modest projected decline in intergovernmental revenues, and shifts in departmental operating costs.
Staff showed the commission a schedule of next steps: public outreach and required notices on the proposed fire assessment fee in August, a first commission hearing on the proposed budget on Sept. 8, and a second and final hearing to adopt the millage rate and budget on Sept. 22. Lindsey warned that state figures released July 1 required minor tweaks to revenue estimates before adoption.
The presentation also flagged capital and reserve concerns. The recommended reserve policy is 25% of general fund, but the city currently projects about 18.06%; meeting the 25% guideline would require roughly $10 million in additional set‑asides, staff said. City staff also reported overall reductions in capital spending compared with earlier years and identified multiple unfunded capital needs across departments.
The commission spent time clarifying timeline items and line‑by‑line departmental changes; no formal votes were taken during the workshop. Commissioners requested updated documents for subsequent review and asked staff to circulate refined goal and KPI listings ahead of the final budget book in September.
The commission signaled interest in several follow-up items: receiving updated goals sorted by department, a revised CIP detail that incorporates July 1 state numbers, and circulation of the department-level KPIs and digital-transformation progress before the next material decision.
For now, the document presented to the commission remains a balanced, proposed budget subject to revision and formal adoption at statutory hearings this fall.
