Wixom council adopts FY 2026–27 budget after questions on fringe costs and capital timing

The Wixom City Council voted 6–1 to adopt the fiscal year 2026–27 budget on a motion to approve the recommended budget and requisite budget resolutions.

Finance Director Rob presented the revised budget and highlighted changes made after the April 21 budget work session, including small decreases in printing ($2,000), economic development ($10,000) and litigation ($2,500) and a corrected salary-adjustment projection of $110,000 that had previously been overstated. He said adding a training coordinator in the fire department raised the department’s salary line by $71,009.09 and fringes by $58,008.20, producing a modest net operating increase of $7,315 tied to those adjustments.

Rob also described changes in capital planning: $25,000 was removed from parks and trail improvements and $20,000 of police special equipment was shifted to FY 2027–28 because a drone purchase faces long lead times; the net change in the capital improvements request was a $45,000 decrease. The proposed net millage rate for 2026 is 13.2308, which Rob said reflects the Hedley Reduction Factor and places Wixom’s rate about 11th lowest among the county’s 31 communities. The budget document projects $17,090,725 in total revenues for FY 2026–27, up roughly $519,000 (about 3.1%) from FY 2025–26 estimated actuals, driven largely by property tax growth and new properties on the tax roll.

Council member Kennedy pressed staff for a detailed breakdown of fringe benefits after noticing what she described as fringe totals “over 50%” of salary in some line items and asked whether the corrected salary adjustment related to that concern. Rob said the $110,000 figure was a correction to a salary adjustment error and explained that fringe increases were driven by multiple items: “Fringes went up. Well actually health insurance went down, but then the rest of the fringes went up,” he said, adding that the defined benefit pension cost rose by about $220,000 and some defined-contribution percentages increased depending on hire date. Brown (City Manager) and Rob advised the council that a full breakdown could be provided to address these questions.

Council member Brown Fox asked whether the city had a dedicated capital improvements millage; staff replied Wixom does not have a separate CIP millage and that most capital improvements come from the general fund or other funding streams such as the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) or brownfield tax capture. Assistant City Manager Benson and Rob said the DDA capture and the brownfield capture each contribute roughly $800,000–$900,000 in captured tax revenue, and Benson noted the DDA tax increment financing plan expires at the end of the 2028–29 fiscal year.

On departmental and capital spending, Rob reported an estimated FY 2026–27 general fund balance of $6,622,005.81 (about 37.6% of expenditures) and a budget stabilization balance of $1,409,923 (about 7.9% of expected expenditures). The 10-year capital improvement plan included a $1 million general-fund contribution for FY 2026–27 and listed projects totaling $2,808,500, including parks and trails, facility repairs and equipment for police and public works. Rob also reported projected residential sewer charges of $192 per household (a $9 increase) and proposed water rates of $45.50 (a 3.5% overall increase).

A vote to adopt the budget and required resolutions carried with six votes in favor and one opposed; Deputy Mayor Gautreau cast the lone no vote. The council recorded the motion as carried and moved on to closing business. The meeting ended with staff announcements including a Timberside Reserve groundbreaking and recognition of staff anniversaries.

The council’s next procedural step on budget oversight will be any required implementation follow-ups, and staff indicated they would provide detailed fringe-benefit breakdowns and additional data at future budget study sessions if council requests them.