Nassau Bay adopts budget with small property-tax bump to fund police raises, street and underground infrastructure work

Mayor Johnson announced the city has finalized the municipal budget and completed the final vote to adopt it, with changes intended to close pay disparities for police and pay down long-standing infrastructure needs.

The budget includes what Mayor Johnson described as “about a 9%” pay increase for police officers intended to make local pay more competitive. The mayor also said the city has budgeted for a multi-year capital program to replace underground piping—he said the city expects to have roughly 15–16 linear miles of piping replaced by 2026—and a $500,000 allocation for street repairs to begin this cycle. “We're very intent on fixing the disparity of pay between our police officers and others in the area,” Mayor Johnson said.

The mayor framed the tax change as limited: the levy will effectively amount to a penny per $100 of assessed value, producing a modest increase in tax dollars rather than a major rate jump. He listed examples: a $100,000 house would see about $10 more per year; a $300,000 house about $30 per year. The mayor said roughly half of the new revenue is expected to come from new property, not from existing homeowners' wallets.

Council members and staff said the city will publish a prioritized list of streets that will be evaluated for repairs and that residents will be able to view the timeline and project priorities on the city's website. “We’ve already got a list, and your street’s on there to evaluate,” a staff member (S2) said in response to a council question.

The budget vote was described by the mayor as the final municipal vote; the adopted budget takes effect Oct. 1. The administration said the capital plan and the water-rate changes targeted at large commercial users will fund the underground work while leaving residents and small businesses largely unaffected by the commercial rate adjustment.

Ending: Officials said the council will post project schedules online and return to the public with specific construction calendars; staff will continue to refine street-prioritization and execution plans.