Finance committee forwards FY2026-27 budget with $600,000 taxpayer-relief placeholder

The Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly Finance Committee voted April 18 to send its recommended FY2026-27 budget to the full assembly after approving a package of amendments and a $600,000 general-fund placeholder intended to limit growth in the area-wide mill rate.

Assemblymember Matthew Kress moved the taxpayer-relief amendment, describing it as a placeholder to keep the area-wide mill rate "level" with last year while final valuation numbers are certified in June. Finance staff said final mill-rate calculations remain estimates until tax valuations are certified; staff said without the $600,000 the area-wide increase under the draft would have been roughly $17.20 per $100,000 of assessed value, and that the $600,000 would reduce that increase by several dollars per $100,000.

The motion passed on roll call. Chair (speaking from the finance committee) directed the clerk's office to post the finance committee's recommendation on the borough website and make copies available to the public; the committee also announced a public hearing on the recommended budget at the borough's May 7, 2026 assembly meeting. The committee adjourned following the vote.

Next steps: the assembly will hold the public hearing on May 7; citizens may sign up to testify by contacting the clerk's office or using the borough website.