Anacortes mayor says personnel reductions were necessary to balance 2026 budget; staff and residents warned of impacts

Mayor Miller opened the Nov. 3 meeting by describing staff notifications about eliminated positions and said the decisions were taken to protect the city's financial stability.

"Team COA, as many of you know from my budget message last week, we have taken the very difficult step of notifying some of our colleagues that their positions are being eliminated due to the city's current financial conditions," Mayor Miller told the council and public. He added: "Ultimately, the responsibility for these circumstances rests with me. During my 8 years on city council, I voted for budgets that added positions that caught the end cost that at the time seemed manageable, but have proven unsustainable."

The mayor explained prior budget cycles used remaining cash balances and a one-time FEMA reimbursement to balance the books and that those resources are now depleted. He said staff and departments reviewed where reductions could occur while aiming to "maintain public safety, our critical infrastructure and essential services like water and sewer."

During public comment several residents raised the human consequences of reductions. Ursula Edelman urged the council to consider the impact on Diana Farnsworth, the teen librarian, saying Farnsworths role "makes teens feel welcome" and that losing her "will hurt the teens she has inspired." Library staff later outlined reduced service capacity tied to lost positions.

Why this matters: Mayor Miller framed personnel reductions as necessary to prevent a larger fiscal collapse and preserve essential services. The announcement was paired with a detailed, department-by-department budget review that followed the meeting and a staff request for council guidance on allocating constrained resources.

Next steps: The council continues budget deliberations in October and November sessions, with a public hearing scheduled for Nov. 17 and statutory deadlines for adopting 2026 budget items by year-end.

Speakers

- Mayor Miller, Mayor of Anacortes (read memo to staff and council on Nov. 3). - Ursula Edelman, resident, spoke about library staff impacts in public comment.

Authorities

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Actions

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Discussion vs. decision

- Discussion only: The mayor announced the staffing reductions and explained the fiscal reasoning; council and public then discussed consequences and priorities. No new formal council action adopting layoffs was recorded in the Nov. 3 minutes; staff said notifications had been made to affected employees.

Clarifying details

- Mayor's timeline for affected staff: Mayor said positions affected will conclude Dec. 1 (public statement). - Fiscal context: Mayor said labor costs have grown "by nearly $2,000,000 each year" in recent mayor/council director retreats and prior one-time resources used to balance budgets are now exhausted.

Proper names

[{"name":"Anacortes","type":"location"},{"name":"Team COA","type":"organization"}]

Community relevance

{ "geographies":["City of Anacortes"], "funding_sources":[], "impact_groups":["city employees","residents who use municipal services"] }

Meeting context

{ "engagement_level": {"speakers_count":6,"duration_minutes":12,"items_count":1}, "implementation_risk":"high","history":[{"date":"2025-10-27","note":"Council had prior budget discussion referenced by public speakers."}], "notes":"Mayor took direct responsibility for budget choices that increased staffing in prior years."}

Searchable tags

["layoffs","budget_2026","Mayor Miller","Anacortes"]

Provenance

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