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Denison council unanimously approves FY2025 year‑end budget amendments and appropriations
Summary
The Denison City Council approved year‑end budget amendments and five appropriations moving unspent FY2025 funds into FY2026, citing net general fund gains and planned carryforwards; councilors pressed staff on delinquent tax receipts and possible utility‑fund shortfalls in coming years.
Denison — The Denison City Council on Dec. 1 unanimously approved fiscal‑year 2025 year‑end budget amendments and appropriations that move unspent funds into the FY2026 budget, city staff said.
Finance Director Lori Ostwald told the council the amendment package includes revenue and expense adjustments across multiple accounts. She said the individual amendments total about $3,100,000 but that general fund revenues overall came in roughly $528,000 over budget. For the utility fund, six accounts accounted for nearly $1.5 million in individual amendments; Ostwald said the utility fund’s net receipts are approximately $593,000 under budget after offsets.
Ostwald also described expense amendments totaling about $920,000 for divisions that exceeded their budgets; net of accounts that were under budget, she said the city is about $1.8 million positive overall. Staff proposed five appropriations totaling $305,000 to carry unspent FY2025 general‑fund money into FY2026 to cover items such as police vehicle outfitting that were not completed in time for the current fiscal year.
Council members asked for clarifications. Councilman Massey pressed whether the city expects to collect delinquent tax receipts that appear as a shortfall; Ostwald responded that Denison’s typical collection rate is between 98% and 99% and staff expects to receive those receipts, though some collections may post in the next fiscal year. Massey also warned the council could face a roughly $1 million shortfall in the utility fund within three years and questioned the city’s ability to meet commitments such as covering obligations tied to a SAFER grant; Ostwald said staff uses multiple forecasting models, budgets conservatively and will provide requested follow‑up numbers.
After discussion, Councilman Massey moved to approve the year‑end amendments and appropriations as presented; Councilor Thomas seconded the motion. The council voted in favor with no opposed votes.
The approval authorizes staff to amend the FY2025 revenues and expenses and to transfer the specified appropriations into the FY2026 budget. Ostwald said staff will begin usual budget work for FY2027 in early 2026 and will return with any additional requested detail.
