Staff outlines FY 2028 budget calendar, proposes streamlined meeting schedule

City staff presented an overview of the FY 2028 budget process and a proposed timeline that staff said will produce more up-to-date revenue information for council decision-making. "The budget is one of the most important documents the city produces," the staff presenter said, describing the budget as a "policy document, a financial plan, an operating guide, and a communication device."

Staff laid out four budget phases — department-level preparation, council authorization and appropriation (including hearings), execution and audit — and stressed statutory milestones tied to state law, including an April 1 submission benchmark in the Virginia code and a July 1 deadline for adopting the tax rate and budget for the coming fiscal year. The presenter said the city is in an assessment year and that the revenue-neutral calculation required by state law affects how much of current-year growth can be recognized.

The staff recommendation would reduce the number of public budget meetings from 10 last cycle to an estimated eight: one joint meeting with the school board, two work sessions and five council meetings. "Our recommendation ... is to streamline that process a bit for increased efficiency," the presenter told council. Staff said departmental detail would remain available in work-session materials so councilors could ask questions even if the body does not walk line-by-line through each department budget.

The calendar details shared by staff include a November 16 kickoff with department heads, a December 18 department submission deadline, a January council retreat, a joint February meeting with the school board, a March 9 stand-alone Winchester Public Schools presentation, a March 23 staff presentation of a first draft, statutory advertising of the not-to-exceed tax rate by April 5, first reading of tax-rate ordinances and the budget ordinance later in April and May, and adoption of the budget ordinance in May.