Daniel council approves tentative FY26–27 budget for public hearing; asks staff to reconcile draft policies

The Daniel Town Council approved a tentative fiscal-year 2026–27 budget on May 4 and set a public hearing on the amended/final budget for June 1.

Town staff explained modest line-item adjustments for office supplies and a reduction in phone and IT costs; overall the town is forecasting to remain under budget (staff reported the fiscal year is about 83% complete and expenses are under budget). Council members praised staff work and asked for the usual audit review and minor reallocations into interest-bearing accounts.

Separately, staff presented draft administrative policies adapted from state-auditor templates (personal use of entity assets, reporting fraud/abuse, credit-card, and travel policies). Several council members and an administrator raised concerns that the draft policies, as written, conflict with existing town ordinances (for example, a water-credit practice) or impose burdensome procurement thresholds and approval steps. One commissioner called for the administration to reconcile two competing drafts and produce a single recommended version.

The council voted to set the budget hearing and to direct administration (mayor and senior staff) to compare the policy drafts and return recommended language for the three specified policies at the June 1 meeting.