City of Portage staff presented the proposed 2026 municipal budget at a public hearing on Nov. 24, 2025, telling residents the city's operating levy is expected to fall slightly while some fees and utility rates may rise.

Presenter (role not specified) said the finance committee and staff worked over several months to produce a balanced budget, stressing an intent to match expenditures to revenues and maintain core services. "We want our expenditures to equal our revenues, so we have a balanced budget," the presenter said, and described priorities to fund contractual service areas, salary and benefit obligations and capital assets while seeking efficiencies.

The presenter outlined revenue and expense drivers. He said net new construction added "58,000" (as stated in the presentation), that some revenue lines grew, and that certain sources such as expenditure restraint and court fees declined. On the expense side he listed increased workers' compensation and property/auto insurance costs, a 2% across-the-board wage increase, and a rise in health insurance costs (stated as 12.9 percent). The presenter said the city identified about $370,000 that required balancing measures.

To close the gap, staff and the finance committee used a combination of account cleanups, reductions in overtime and supply budgets, and service adjustments. The presenter said many of the cuts were on the staff side and would not be outwardly visible to the public except in a few areas: a vacant public works position will remain unfilled for budget savings, some porta-potties will be removed, technological equipment replacement will slow, and the concession stand and winter open-gym program will not be offered in the coming year. "It won't be outwardly visible really to the public outside a handful of areas that may impact how we do things or how fast we do some things," the presenter said. He added that police, fire and EMS remain funded.

On taxes, the presenter said the city's tax levy on the operating budget is expected to decline by "roughly 35 ish thousand dollars or 0.4% for next year," a mill-rate decrease he described as a five-cent reduction from $9.70 to $9.65. He estimated that equates to about $15.15 less in annual taxes on a $300,000 home. He cautioned, however, that the tax bill residents receive also reflects overlapping jurisdictions and TID (tax incremental district) activity; the presenter said TIDs are beginning to generate more taxable value and that the city line on a tax bill could appear higher because of TID amounts included in the levy calculation.

A resident identified as living at 903 Dunn Street asked whether taxes were going up and said many people expected a much larger levy change. "Many people thought that the change in the levy was gonna be 20%," the resident said, and asked for copies of the budget. The presenter responded that the city's operating levy is down about 0.4% and reiterated that increases on a tax bill can reflect county, school district and TID components outside the city's direct operating levy.

The presenter also noted continued investments in streets, saying East Pleasant is anticipated for work in 2026 if engineering estimates and contractor quotes align. The hearing record included the city's public-access information: the full budget summary is available at the Portage Municipal Building, the Portage Public Library and online at portagewi.gov; the public hearing notice said it was published Nov. 1 and provided a contact for disability accommodations.

The public hearing portion closed at 5:46 p.m.; the city council agenda later that evening included consideration of adoption of the budget.