St. Louis budget stays essentially flat at $1.41 billion as city shifts modestly toward pay and public-safety projects

Budget Director Paul Payne told the Budget & Public Employees Committee on May 20 that the proposed FY27 operating plan totals $1,410,000,000, a modest 0.5% rise over the prior year, with the general fund budget set at $637,100,000 — a 4.9% increase that Payne attributed largely to normalization after large tax refunds the prior year.

Payne said special revenue funds total about $257.6 million (up 3.9%), enterprise funds are budgeted at roughly $335.2 million and the capital improvement budget is $50.4 million, down about 17.9% from FY26 because the prior-year operating surplus available to seed capital projects is smaller. Grant fund appropriations decline largely because ARPA interest earnings used last year were not repeated this year.

Pay and benefits account for a substantial portion of the proposed increases. Payne said the budget includes roughly $18 million across departments for employee compensation changes, including entry-level market adjustments, a 3% increase for most city employees and a 7% raise for uniformed police and firefighters. Health insurance costs are projected to rise about 5.3% (roughly $3.8 million), which includes an estimated $1.6 million for police retiree health. Because pension investments outperformed assumptions, the city expects a $6.5 million reduction in next year’s pension contributions, though total pension contributions still exceed $100 million in the proposed budget.

Payne highlighted program-level allocations in special funds and the general fund: $2 million to the Forestry Division for enhanced weed-and-debris cleanup, $2 million to continue the Code Blue emergency housing program, a $4 million increase for derelict building demolition (bringing the demolition fund to $9.3 million), $1 million for a right-to-counsel housing initiative and $1 million to continue the tiny homes program. He also described a $5 million reappropriation of ARPA interest to help complete the PSAP public-safety answering point, which the administration plans to combine with capital and bond funds to finish the project.

Public-safety and Prop P funds were described in detail. Payne said public safety represents the largest share of the general fund at 51.8%. The Prop P public-safety half-cent sales tax is allocated by ordinance: roughly 66% to police, 28% to fire and 6% to the circuit attorney. The economic development half-cent formula directs 60% to transit, 10% to neighborhood stabilization, 10% to workforce development, 10% to public-safety infrastructure and 10% to capital through an ordinance-based formula.

On personnel, citywide positions total roughly 6,415 across all funds, a net decline of 82 positions year over year and 22 fewer positions in the general fund. Payne presented a bar chart showing a decade-long decline in general fund positions and noted some department-level reallocations — for example, towing and traffic inventory positions in the streets division, and new forestry crews for the weed-and-debris program.

Payne closed by noting the city’s fund balance has recovered to recommended levels, that pension funded status is generally near or above 80% for most systems, and that the proposed FY27 budget uses conservative revenue assumptions to balance the general fund. The presentation ends with the director’s estimate that the FY27 budget as proposed balances with projected revenue under the assumptions described.

What’s next: Committee members said they will present amendments next week, limited by charter rules that generally allow subtraction rather than additions, and they subpoenaed the Board of Police Commissioners to appear before amendments are finalized so the committee can consider any requested police funding increases with department-level explanation.

Sources: Budget presentation to the Budget & Public Employees Committee by Budget Director Paul Payne, May 20 (transcript).