Shenandoah council begins review of proposed FY2026-27 budget; staff flags tax-notice requirement and sales-tax uptick

At its July 8 meeting the Shenandoah City Council received the first of several reviews of the proposed fiscal year 2026-27 budget, with staff asking the council to treat several revenue figures as placeholders until certified tax worksheets are available.

"Mayor and council, this is the 1st of several budget discussions we're gonna be in," the staff presenter said, noting a new statutory requirement under House Bill 1522 that adds a taxpayer impact statement to every agenda.

The presenter said the property-tax line in the proposed budget remains at last year's figure "as a placeholder" because certified values will not be available until the county tax office finalizes worksheets at the end of the month. Staff also reported a strong sales-tax return for the most recent reporting period and that the city is "significantly up" year over year, though the presenter cautioned that more detailed, itemized data from the comptroller is pending and could change the picture.

On the expenditure side, staff told the council most departmental increases are driven by personnel costs under the city's step-pay model. Administration budget items included modest operating-supply shifts and a higher travel and training allocation tied to the upcoming state legislative session. The finance department shows an $8,000 proposed increase in the city's share of appraisal costs to the county appraisal district and a placeholder for a possible additional single audit tied to ARPA closing requirements.

Staff outlined several one-time or timing-driven adjustments: a temporary increase for the community development department to fund five-year fire- and extinguisher-inspection work, reclassification of some technology contracts as cloud-based operating services, and a transfer record for trash and recycling that largely functions as an in/out fund. The presenter said the city locked in a three-year contract for one cloud service to stabilize costs.

Council members asked clarifying questions about step increases, pay parity for police, the timing of appraisal district increases and whether audit costs would be charged to ARPA funds. Staff said they will return to the council during the next budget workshop with updated figures once the county's certified worksheets arrive and after further review of sales-tax detail. The council did not take final action on the budget and directed staff to bring more detail to the workshop.

The city scheduled follow-up budget-workshop sessions to review high-cost departments and present analysis requested by council members.