Lexington presents FY27 general fund budget with no millage increase; council presses on staffing and transportation costs

Lexington’s town staff presented the proposed fiscal year 2027 general fund budget at a council workshop, saying the plan contains no millage increase and is balanced while budgeting modest revenue growth and targeted new positions.

Assistant Finance Director Lorraine Weider told the council the proposed budget “increased budgeted general fund revenue by 277,827, which is a 1.5% increase from last year,” driven largely by anticipated growth in property taxes and business-license receipts. The plan includes a 2% increase for certain established user and permit fees but no change to the town’s millage rate, staff said.

Why it matters: the proposal commits roughly 46% of general fund spending to public safety (about $8.9 million), with about 84% of that public-safety allocation dedicated to salaries and benefits. Parks, community services, transportation, municipal court, planning and general government make up the remainder of the fund’s outlays. The budget also shows several new or upgraded positions included to maintain service levels.

Council members focused their questions on several problem areas. Councilman Smith pressed staff over large percentage increases in overtime in multiple departments — citing parks (25.3%), building maintenance (638%), IT (200%), and transportation (62%) — asking whether the town is adequately staffed or requiring excessive overtime. Finance and department directors said all requested positions are included in the budget and that some high percentage changes reflect small dollar baselines rather than large absolute increases. Jeff, a department director invited to speak, said a rise from $150 to $1,100 in building-maintenance pay creates a high percentage variance even though the dollar change is modest and that responders frequently handle emergency building and storm-related work.

Transportation costs were another major focus. Randy, the town transportation official, said an adaptive signal system change eliminated a pay-as-you-go option and now requires a per-signal maintenance fee, which he identified as one of the largest drivers of the roughly 18% increase in the transportation operating budget. “We are now maintaining right at 48 intersections,” he said, and the new per-signal software/maintenance obligation alone was described by staff as about $50,000.

Council also questioned external funding expectations for roadwork. Randy said the town expects little federal funding for routine roadwork next year and listed state and county reimbursements and grants as variable; he noted a roughly $100,000 annual reimbursement from the state DOT for signal work but said larger projects often rely on hospitality-tax funding and town-managed reimbursements from SCDOT when the town serves as project manager.

The budget includes a $150,000 contingent capital line item to manage a rebuild of the signalized intersection at I‑26 and 378, near Lexington Hospital; Randy said the town would manage design and bidding and expect later reimbursement from SCDOT for eligible expenses.

Council members also questioned contractual service lines. One council member raised the $62,750 combined cost for long-term advocacy/consulting contracts (Capital Consultants $39,000; Adams and Reese $23,750) and asked whether the town gets measurable returns. Town staff said Adams and Reese primarily assists at the federal level and Capital Consultants at the state level and offered to review contract deliverables and renegotiation options if council desires.

Staff emphasized compensation commitments in the proposed plan: the budget includes a 2% cost-of-living adjustment and fully funds merit increases and merit bonuses per the town’s compensation policy. Lorraine noted certain capital items requested for FY27 are now achievable in FY26 through salary savings and cost underruns and said council will see a budget amendment brought back for two readings when staff sharpens cost estimates.

Next steps: staff said the FY27 budget will proceed through the town’s formal adoption process, which includes two readings and a public hearing. Residents can follow updates on the town website and social channels. The council adjourned the workshop after public comment and a separate ratification of the executive-session report.