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Ennis officials outline FY26 budget with cuts, reserve target and wage adjustments
Summary
City Manager Andrea Weckmueller Beringer presented a conservative FY26 budget that preserves 30% reserves, anticipates a 6% sales-tax revenue decline and flags a general-fund shortfall. Staff recommended targeted cuts, graduated wage adjustments and ordering a follow-up workshop to weigh decision packages.
City Manager Andrea Weckmueller Beringer told the Ennis City Commission on July 10 that the proposed fiscal 2026 operating budget aims to protect core services while dealing with weaker-than-expected sales-tax revenue.
Beringer said staff is proposing a conservative 6% reduction in sales-tax receipts for FY26 and recommended keeping the citys general- and utility-fund reserves at roughly 30% of operating expenses. "Financial responsibility, we do live within our means and there will be some hard conversations today," she said, calling for a focus on core services such as public safety and utilities.
Why it matters: city staff told commissioners they had asked departments to build budgets assuming a roughly $500,000-plus shortfall in the general fund as a planning baseline. That shortfall, combined with rising material and labor costs, prompted staff to preserve reserves and pare one-time spending to protect service levels.
Finance Director Stanley (presenting the debt and fund slides) said the budget guidance directed department heads to identify decision packages and prioritize only those that are essential. He noted the city has used robust reserves in prior years and stressed a cautious approach: "We are retaining staff in all core functionalities — public safety, utilities — and maintaining reserves at 30% because 25% was a little low," he said.
Commissioners asked for follow-up detail on the certified property valuations that feed the no-new-revenue calculation; staff said the county appraisal numbers are due July 25 and promised to return with the updated no-new-revenue rate and with an assessment of senior homestead-exemption options for residents 65 and older.
Wages and benefits: Beringer said the managers office proposes graduated wage adjustments to offset standardizing employee health-plan participation, rather than an across-the-board cost-of-living increase. "The lowest wage band receives the highest percentage increase," she said, explaining the adjustment would make lower-wage roles more competitive while keeping the program fiscally sustainable.
Next steps: commissioners scheduled an evening workshop for July 29 to review decision-package priorities, after staff has updated revenue and valuation figures. Beringer said staff has a list of follow-up items and will return with more granular proposals and recommended priorities.
No formal votes were taken at the July 10 workshop; the session was advisory to guide budget drafting ahead of the August public hearings and the charter-required adoption later this summer.
