Council passes amended 2026 operating budget with added homelessness investments
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Summary
Columbus City Council adopted an amended 2026 operating budget totaling $1,258,877,066, including multi-million-dollar restorations and new allocations for homelessness services, summer programming and other departmental restorations.
Columbus City Council voted to adopt the 2026 operating budget (Ordinance 2938) on March 2 after a series of amendments that added targeted funding for homelessness services and other priorities. Finance Chair Nick Mason read the amended general-fund total as $1,258,877,066 before the council adopted both the amendment and the final ordinance by roll-call vote.
The amendments included a $7.2 million addition for the Community Shelter Board, $3 million for a 27-day pay-period reserve, $1 million to restore the Elevate grant program, $1.8 million for federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), and restorations to municipal court and summer camp funding, among other line items. Mason described the process as difficult amid rising costs and constrained revenues and said the council would form a fiscal sustainability task force to pursue longer-term solutions.
Shannon Isom, president and CEO of the Community Shelter Board, thanked council for the “historic” investment and urged accountability, saying the additional funds would expand immediate shelter capacity, increase shelter-to-housing pathways and reduce emergency-system costs. “This decision will not only determine the immediate shelter capacity, but also the long-term health, safety, and stability of our neighbors who are experiencing homelessness,” Isom said.
Council members acknowledged the tight fiscal environment and the need for better budgeting transparency. Council Member Green voiced concern about details still outstanding from earlier budget hearings, including a list of proposed contract cuts and the impact on service providers and staff; Green said she planned close oversight of contracts that might face reductions.
What happens next: With passage, the administration will implement appropriations for fiscal year 2026. Council said it expects follow-up reporting on the impact of the homelessness investments and the sustainability task force will propose options for long-term structural solutions.
