Coolidge workshop previews 2026 budget, flags proposed solid-waste and trim rate increases

At a City of Coolidge workshop on Dec. 2, 2025, municipal leaders reviewed the preliminary 2026 budget and discussed proposed increases to solid-waste charges and a listed 'trim rate.' No formal motion or vote was recorded in the minutes.

The discussion of the 2026 budget was recorded in the workshop minutes but did not include proposed totals, line-item changes or a timetable for adoption. The minutes list a separate agenda item as "Solid Waste Rate Increase" and another as "Trim Rate Increase"; neither entry specifies dollar amounts, effective dates, or the departments responsible for implementing changes.

Budget decisions that would change household or business billing typically return to a public council meeting for formal action, and the workshop minutes do not record any such motion. The minutes do not identify which official presented the rate options or any specific fiscal analysis.

City staff and council members are expected to carry budget deliberations forward to a subsequent council meeting, where proposed rates and an ordinance or resolution would be presented for public comment and a recorded vote. The workshop was adjourned by Mayor Diane H. Causey.