The Columbia City Common Council convened a special meeting at 1 p.m. Oct. 24, 2025, for a public hearing on the proposed 2026 budget; no members of the public spoke and the council closed the hearing, the presiding officer said.

The presiding officer told the council the 2026 budget is broadly similar to the current year but that revenue pressures tied to what the speaker called "senate rolled act 1" reduced expected receipts. "We had a little issue with our financial consultants and and getting the excess levy thing that happened that we passed last time, and so then we had work that into our budget," the presiding officer said, explaining staff had adjusted the draft to reflect the levy.

The presiding officer said the city asked department heads to submit "needs and wants" lists during budget preparation and that not all needs could be funded. On wages, the presiding officer said the budget does not include across-the-board pay increases because even small raises would carry large costs for a staff of about "100 and some" employees: "I think, 50¢ raise, I think, ends up being, like, a $100,000," the presiding officer said. The presiding officer added the city intends to keep performance and wellness bonuses.

Officials also discussed pursuing state grant funding through the Community Crossings program to help with projects, noting the statewide program had been reduced from about $200,000,000 to roughly $100,000,000. The presiding officer said Columbia City's compliance with its Title 6 and ADA accessibility plans could position the city favorably for those funds.

The presiding officer characterized the year ahead as "a bit of a lean year" and referenced ongoing legislative conversations about local revenue replacement. Because this meeting was a public hearing, no formal budget vote was taken at the session. After hearing no public comments, the presiding officer closed the public hearing, reopened the council meeting and adjourned.

Details supplied at the hearing were limited to staff presentation and council roll call; no formal motions or votes were recorded in the transcript.