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Kodiak Island Borough Assembly adopts FY2027 budget and sets mill rate at 8.75 after debate
Summary
After extended debate over MAPTOR revenue preservation and school funding, the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly adopted the FY2027 budget and a tax ordinance setting the mill rate at 8.75 (option D), approving the budget and tax levy by roll-call votes on June 4, 2026.
The Kodiak Island Borough Assembly on June 4 adopted its fiscal year 2027 budget and a property-tax ordinance that sets the borough’s mill rate at 8.75, after an hour-plus debate about how much revenue to collect and whether to protect MAPTOR-calculated capacity for next year.
Assembly member Johnson moved to adopt a 9.15 mill rate to preserve the MAPTOR baseline, arguing the assembly must collect the revenue authorized under the MAPTOR agreement or ‘‘that $500,000 deficit is permanently wiped off the top of next year’s starting baseline.’’ The motion to take the higher mill rate failed on a 5–2 vote, after which the assembly debated alternate options offered by staff.
Manager Williams told the assembly the introduced budget was balanced and that staff updated salary and benefit estimates, and transfers reflecting a revised debt-service figure. A revised staff handout corrected a $67,015 salary allocation error before the assembly considered option D.
Assembly members expressed competing priorities. Assembly member Gardner and others said preserving MAPTOR capacity protected the borough’s future revenue baseline and favored restoring funds to the school district; Assembly member Smiley and others said the community needs tax relief and cited the school district’s internal adjustments. After discussion and amendment to correct allocations, the assembly adopted option D (mill rate 8.75) by roll call: Roberts, Whiteside, Woods, Ames and Gardner voted yes; Johnson and Smiley voted no.
The assembly also adopted the FY2027 budget ordinance (FY2027-01) as introduced; staff said the budget remains balanced after adjusting salary estimates and using 75% of FY26 facility-fund interest. Manager Williams noted several changes made during the introductory phase and reviewed a set of four options distributed to members prior to final action.
What happens next: The adopted ordinances authorize the borough to levy 2026 property taxes and appropriate funds for FY2027; staff said they will finalize ordinance language and return any necessary follow-ups to the assembly. The assembly recessed briefly to allow staff to update the ordinance documents and proceeded with the remainder of the evening’s business.
(Reporting note: direct quotes and vote tallies are taken from the June 4, 2026 assembly transcript.)
