Mayor presents State of the City; council adopts $57.8 million budget for 2026–27

The mayor delivered Florence's annual State of the City and the City Council unanimously adopted the fiscal 2026'27 budget on a 5-0 roll call. The adopted budget (Ordinance 016-2026) projects general fund revenues of $53,597,000 and total appropriations of $57,828,663 across funds, and includes a newly created $1.88 million information-technology budget and reclassification of $1.5 million from capital to operating expenditures.

The mayor framed the address as a progress report and thanked council and department heads by name for their roles in financial stewardship and service delivery. "Through the dedication of our employees, the strength of our business community, and the engagement of our residents, we continue building a Florence where people can feel connected, supported, and proud to call home," the mayor said.

The mayor highlighted finance department work led by Finance Director Jason Lewis, noting new budgeting software and a public transparency page intended to make the budget process more accessible. The administration also described planned capital spending of $6,674,200 and said capital totals represent a 65.6% decrease from the prior year. The mayor credited stable revenue collections and said the city remains "well positioned to meet both today's needs and tomorrow's opportunities."

The State of the City address reviewed department-level accomplishments. Public Services reported an operating budget of $8,233,500 and said investments include AI-enabled CCTV sewer inspections, park master-plan work and LED facility upgrades. Fire & EMS reported 11,147 incident responses in the past year and delivery of a new 90-foot aerial platform. The Police Department was credited with growth in sworn staffing and multiple training and community-engagement initiatives.

Council members voted to adopt the budget after the mayor read Exhibit A fund-by-fund. Council members said the budget had been discussed in workshops and a previous budget address. The vote was recorded as Miss Wingo: yes; Miss Chambers: yes; Gary Wyn (appearing as "Mr. W" in the roll call): yes; Miss Whan: yes; Miss Cable: yes.

Separately, council approved a budget amendment (Ordinance 015-2026) that reallocates certain departmental costs, funds a temporary finance position and increases miscellaneous lines to account for state sales and use tax that the mayor said was owed "from diverted revenues related to the ongoing federal investigation." The transcript references payment of taxes, penalties and interest going back to 2023; no additional details about the investigation were provided in the meeting record.

The mayor concluded by inviting residents to a July 9 "Cookies and Conversations" event and promoted the city's July 3 Independence Day celebration at Thomas More Stadium. The council adjourned at the end of the meeting.