Council fails to adopt a final tax rate and schedules public hearing for Sept. 29

Council considered motions to set the ad valorem tax rate for FY 2026–27 and debated alternatives including a no-new-revenue rate and a staff-recommended increase. Staff said the no-new-revenue rate is 0.498770; Chambers recommended 0.577011 per $100 valuation. Multiple competing motions to raise the rate failed to achieve a majority.

One motion to increase the rate by 0.078931 over the no-new-revenue rate was voted 3–3 and failed. A later motion to adopt a rate (transcript shows a different numeric entry) also did not pass. Chambers reiterated his recommendation for 0.577011 but council members said unresolved accounting questions made some reluctant to set a final rate without additional reconciled financial information.

Because the council did not adopt a final tax rate during the meeting, members set a public hearing on the proposed city budget and tax rate for Sept. 29 at 5:30 p.m. The hearing will provide an opportunity for public comment before the council must act under statutory timelines.