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Hendersonville staff asks council to delay adopting $75.15 million budget after county moves; council keeps public hearing open
Summary
City staff presented a $75.15 million recommended budget and urged council to keep the public hearing open while staff models impacts from Henderson County's recent budget and sheriff pay changes; council agreed and continued the hearing to June 24.
The Hendersonville City Council on June 4 heard the manager's recommended $75,150,992 budget for fiscal year 2026-27 but did not adopt it after staff requested more time to model recent county actions that may affect city revenues.
City Manager (identified in the record as City Manager) told the council that, because Henderson County adopted a budget with a 4.3% tax increase and an average 18% pay increase for sheriff's deputies the previous night, "we would ask that we open the public hearing and receive public comment" and recommended leaving the hearing open so staff can analyze the county's impact on the city's sales-tax distribution and other forecasts. He asked council to continue the hearing to the June 24 meeting so any proposed changes could be released publicly in advance.
The presentation outlined revenue and expenditure balances: staff said roughly 60% of general fund revenues come from ad valorem taxes and about 32% from unrestricted intergovernmental sources, mainly sales tax. Staff emphasized there is no proposed property tax increase in the recommended budget and said the total recommended package is about $75.15 million. City staff recommended utility rate adjustments to fund capital needs, including an 8% increase for water and a 9% increase for sewer, and a $1 residential increase in the stormwater fee.
The manager described priorities in the recommended spending plan, including public safety and water and sewer capital projects, and highlighted that roughly 45% of the budget is allocated to the general fund and 43% to water and sewer operations. "We are not proposing a property tax increase at the moment," he said, while explaining the proposed utility and stormwater fee changes.
After council discussion and confirmation from the clerk that the public hearing had been advertised in accordance with state statutes, Council member Lorenz moved to recess and continue the public hearing to the June 24 meeting at 4:00 p.m. in the large meeting room at City Operations. The motion passed by voice vote; the public hearing will remain open so staff can present any changes and allow further public comment.
Next steps: staff will complete modeling of county impacts and present any recommended budget changes at the continued hearing on June 24; the public will have an opportunity to comment then.
