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Finance director says 2025 ended in surplus as council eyes upcoming rate and funding talks
Summary
Finance Director Tracy Welsh told the council that 2025 revenues exceeded budget expectations across the general fund, police levies and capital projects while most departments underspent; she recommended staff begin rate and funding discussions this summer to address upcoming project debt service.
Tracy Welsh, the City of Geneva finance director, told the City Council on Feb. 23 that the city closed 2025 with revenues above budgeted levels and expenditures below projections.
"For the most part, general fund, police levies and capital projects ended up more than anticipated," Welsh said, noting the general fund was about 5% above projections, police levies about 4% higher, and the new capital projects fund about 11% over budget. She said general fund departments collectively spent roughly 81.73% of their budgets, reflecting conservative budgeting and underspending by department heads.
Welsh attributed some revenue gains to the first full year city income tax was reported in the general fund and to a new allocation rule that directs 5% of income-tax revenues to the capital projects fund. She also highlighted timing effects in the water and wastewater funds: several grant and loan receipts and contracted work rolled into 2026, reducing reported 2025 revenue for those enterprise funds.
To illustrate operating impacts, Welsh said the increment in wastewater charges in 2025—about $171,748 relative to 2024—closely matched early debt-service obligations for the West Main project. She also noted water charges contributed roughly $46,180 and that the water fund will cover about half of the annual cost of a recently purchased jet-vac truck (about $49,133 per year).
Welsh recommended the council begin formal discussions on rates and funding in June or July so the city can plan for upcoming project debt and potential rate adjustments. She said the city has already started work with the auditor of states Local Government Services to prepare GAAP-converted 2025 financial statements and that auditors began fieldwork the week of the meeting.
The council did not take immediate action on rates during the meeting; Welsh said staff will return with comparisons (original budget versus actual) for major projects such as West Main when available. The council moved on to other agenda items.
