Garland staff preview FY27 budget: avoid one-time fixes, close wage gaps and seek November tax-rate swap to fund operations

CFO Allison Steadman and City Manager Mike Betts outlined the fiscal choices before Garland as staff prepares the FY27 budget. Steadman emphasized three priorities: do not use one-time funds for recurring structural gaps, address general-schedule wage compression to retain staff, and ensure each budget dollar aligns with the strategic plan.

Staff presented two scenarios. The "no" baseline trims low-impact vacancies and realigns existing budgets; the "yes" scenario—conditioned on a successful November tax-rate rebalancing ballot—would add resources for core services and strategic priorities, including nine firefighters, ten police officers, additional dispatchers, and $5 million for a redevelopment fund. "There is a right use for one-time money," Betts said. "It's a great use for redevelopment and revitalization."

Staff projected that under current trends (cost growth > revenue caps) Garland would face a multi-year shortfall; the proposed swap-and-drop ballot would rebalance tax-rate capacity from debt service to operations, estimated to reduce the average residential bill modestly under preliminary estimates. Council gave directional support for several staff proposals and asked staff to return with detailed budget materials and maps for the focus areas.