Edgewater staff present draft FY2027 budget; council told to expect possible $5 million hit from tax reform

Bridget Bass, Edgewater’s finance director, told Mayor DePauw and the city council at a July 8 budget workshop that staff is presenting a work-in-progress draft FY2027 governmental funds budget and will return with a final document later in the calendar process.

Bass said the proposed operating millage is 6.33 and that ad-valorem taxes make up roughly 43% of recurring general-fund revenue. She gave staff estimates for ad-valorem proceeds at the current millage and said the city is preparing for an estimated revenue reduction of about $5,000,000 in the first years if the state property-tax reform measure reaches the ballot and passes. "We are looking proactively at what all we can do with that," Bass said.

Why it matters: Bass told the council the potential shortfall would directly affect the general fund — the accounts that pay for police, fire, parks and recreation, and general government services — and said staff is considering a mix of offsets including a revised fire-assessment study, grant-funded capital projects, and use of reserves for one-time items.

Key figures and proposals presented by staff include: a proposed operating millage of 6.33; an estimated ad-valorem revenue figure shown in staff slides of roughly $14.2 million (staff-presented estimate); a proposed residential fire-assessment baseline of $50 per unit that staff estimates could generate about $641,771 in FY2027; salaries and benefits comprising about 65.73% of the general-fund budget; and capital-equipment outlays shown at roughly $559,480 for replacement vehicles and equipment.

Bass outlined several capital-project estimates and funding plans: paving projects (about $800,000), dirt-road reduction ($200,000), sidewalk projects including a grant-funded Mango Tree sidewalk, boat-ramp improvements with several grant applications and roughly $7.9 million in various grant-funded project estimates cited, and park upgrades. For the fire department, staff flagged a ladder truck purchase with a total cost presented as $2,100,000; staff said $300,000 has already been set aside from fire assessments and recommended an internal loan from the general fund to bridge timing until fire-impact fees are collected and can be used to repay the loan.

Debt and reserves: staff reported several outstanding debt items, noted one obligation (an animal shelter) had been paid off, and showed estimated government-wide debt and internal service fund balances. Unassigned fund-balance and reserve amounts were presented in staff slides; Bass described an approach that would leave operating reserves near 17% under the current draft scenario.

Council questions and staff responses covered restricted-use funds and processes: Bass said tree-mitigation funds are legally restricted to tree and irrigation work and that the city is part of a county task force defining eligible uses for opioid-settlement funds; any use would come back to council as a recommendation. Councilors also pressed for line-item detail on travel/per diem increases; Bass said the mayor-and-council travel line now budgets for the possibility of all five members attending several conferences and listed estimated sub-lines (Florida League of Cities, U.S. Conference of Mayors, regional meetings) that together increased the travel total in staff estimates.

On fleet and vehicles, staff said department requests were reviewed and trimmed, and that the city is working to create a formal fleet-replacement program to improve timing of trade-ins and capture better resale value. Staff explained that some vehicle purchases replace equipment well past useful life and that docking stations for police mobile laptops are a needed upgrade.

Process and next steps: Bass reminded the council of upcoming dates for the Truth in Millage process: staff will set maximum millage and consider the fire assessment at a July 20 meeting; the rate resolution is scheduled for Aug. 3; a tentative budget workshop is listed for Aug. 10; and two public hearings on budget and millage are scheduled in September (Sept. 14 and Sept. 28) per the staff calendar.

The workshop included multiple council questions and clarifications; staff repeatedly emphasized the draft status of the document and that several figures depend on pending studies, final taxable-value data, and potential state legislative changes. The council did not take formal votes at the workshop; staff was directed to return with further detail and with ordinance/assessment items on the July 20 meeting agenda as described.