Ward Kettering Re-elected Mayor; Council Approves Year‑end Budget Cleanups

The City of Perry council re-elected Ward Kettering as mayor and confirmed its current vice mayor during a regular meeting where members also approved year‑end budget housekeeping measures.

Councilors nominated Kettering from the floor and voted to elect him to the mayoral post for the next four years; the council then accepted a nomination to keep the existing vice mayor in place. The meeting record shows council assent; vote tallies were recorded on the floor as unanimous for those motions.

On finance matters, the council approved Resolution 2025‑32 to transfer funds from utility tax reserves to cover a temporary general fund shortfall caused by hurricane expenses. Finance staff said the transfer follows the auditor’s recommendation to use reserves now and replenish them when FEMA or other outside reimbursement arrives.

Council also reviewed a separate resolution authorizing reserve use for hurricane-related spending and expected to return FEMA funds to reserves once reimbursements are received. A staff member described the actions as “clean up” entries needed to avoid reporting a deficit until federal funds arrive.

Next steps: staff will complete the paperwork to record the transfers and, if FEMA reimbursement timing changes, the council expects to correct reserves when funds are received.