Council adopts operating budget after extended debate over overtime, police staffing and camera monitoring

Bastrop — The City Council voted to adopt Resolution 26‑2138, the proposed operating budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, after lengthy debate over how overtime and vacancies are shown in departmental salary lines.

The administration presented a set of amendments that the council adopted in sequence. Several amendments shifted expenses out of object codes flagged as overtime so the council could see the historical use of vacancy salaries that were paid out as overtime. After adopting the amendments, the council approved the operating budget as amended by roll call.

The most sustained discussion centered on the police department. Council members repeatedly asked for a clear reconciliation of how many officers were budgeted, how many are currently on staff, and how vacancies are translating into overtime. Chief Williams explained the staffing and scheduling realities behind the overtime figures: “We work 24‑hour shifts. So ... we work 56 hour work weeks other than admin,” and said vacancies, vacations and long‑term sick leave require overtime to fill shifts. He described training time for new hires — roughly nine to 10 months from academy enrollment to a solo patrol assignment — as a factor that delays any immediate reduction in overtime after hiring.

Administration said the overtime entries were not new money but reflected how vacancy salaries historically had been expended, and that it separated those payments into object categories to allow the council to track them in real time. Ricky Smith, speaking for the administration, said the practice was intended to give the council a monitoring tool: he told members he could produce the personnel and overtime reports but emphasized that projections used Q3 data and five‑year actual trends to estimate year‑end spending.

Council members repeatedly pressed for source documentation. One council member said, “I can’t say anything with this budget until I know how many people that you actually budgeted for.” The administration agreed to provide detailed overtime and personnel reports showing regular salaries, vacancies and overtime by department so the council could run the numbers itself.

Councilmembers also asked about the city’s public‑safety cameras. Chief Williams said the city currently has 21 camera heads across 18 locations and that some locations use multiple camera heads. He told the council that cameras have helped solve crimes but acknowledged the city does not have enough staff dedicated to monitoring the feed; several council members recommended creating a dedicated monitoring position to make better use of the cameras and free officers for other duties.

The amended budget includes a mixture of restorations and reductions across departments; the administration said most changes were technical recodings or responses to council questions rather than newly requested dollars. Councilmembers were explicit that they expect to revisit several lines during required quarterly budget reviews if projections deviate from actuals.

What happens next: The administration will deliver the requested personnel and overtime detail and the council’s finance committee will review the invoices and object‑code allocations (street/traffic lights was noted as a priority for reconciliation). The adopted budget will take effect July 1; the council reserved the right to amend the budget in Q1 if close‑out actuals differ materially from the projections presented at the meeting.