Title
Resolution to Adopt Ann Arbor City Budget and Related Property Tax Millage Rates for Fiscal Year 2026
Memorandum
Attached for your review and action is the proposed FY 2026 City Budget that totals $680 million in revenue and $638 million in expenditures and is in compliance with the City Charter. This budget resolution reflects the recommended budget delivered to you on April 21, 2025.
General Fund Activities
This recommended budget holds recurring expenditure levels in line with the projected revenue levels (see attached file for full details).
General Fund recurring expenditures increased by $10,190,943 (+7.6%) compared to FY 2025’s adopted budget, and recurring revenues increased by $9,211,538 (+6.7%). Below is a summary of non-recurring expenditures:
(see attached file for full details)
FTEs
The City’s FTEs are proposed to increase from 849, as adopted for FY 2025, to 863 in FY 2026 (excluding transfers between Service Areas and net of incidental changes):
• 0.87 FTE increase in Community Services, Planning
• 4.0 FTE increase in Community Services, Building
• 4.0 FTE increase in Community Services, Ann Arbor Housing Commission
• 1.0 FTE increase in City Administrator, Sustainability
• 1.0 FTE increase in Safety Services, Police
• 3.5 FTE increase in Public Services
As part of the workforce planning initiative, Council is authorizing staff to exceed the authorized 863 FTEs by 10 on a temporary basis.
Millage Rates
The following millages are the maximum allowable levy after the Headlee rollback multiplier is applied (for FY 2026 the Headlee rollback multiplier is anticipated to be 0.9940) (see attached file for full details):
Staff
Prepared by: Marti Praschan, Chief Financial Officer
Approved by: Martin Dohoney, Jr, City Administrator
Body
Whereas, City Council has reviewed the City Administrator’s proposed budget for FY 2026 for the City of Ann Arbor, which was submitted on April 21, 2025 in accordance with Charter Section 8.2; and
Whereas, A public hearing and various public meetings have been held to obtain citizen input on the proposed budget; and
RESOLVED, That any contributions to the Special Assistance Fund in excess of the budgeted amount, shall be appropriated at the time of receipt and for the purpose of the Ann Arbor Assistance Fund;
RESOLVED, That any funds contributed to the Parks Memorials and Contributions fund in excess of the budgeted amount shall be appropriated at the time of receipt for the purpose of that fund without regard to fiscal year;
RESOLVED, That any contributions to the Drug Enforcement Fund, the Federal Equitable Sharing Forfeiture Fund and the Michigan Justice Training Fund in excess of the budgeted amount, shall be appropriated at the time of receipt, without regard to fiscal year, and for the purpose of the Drug Enforcement Fund, the Federal Equitable Sharing Forfeiture Fund and the Michigan Justice Training Fund, respectively;
RESOLVED, That any contributions from the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) to the General Capital Fund for the purpose of the Streetlight Replacement and Painting Project, in excess of the budgeted amount, shall be appropriated at the time of receipt, without regard to fiscal year;
RESOLVED, That any funds contributed to General Fund from the National Opioid Settlement in excess of the budgeted amount shall be appropriated at the time of receipt without regard to fiscal year;
RESOLVED, That any unspent National Opioid Settlement funding in the General Fund City Administrator service unit budget carry forward to FY 2026;
RESOLVED, That the proposed list of Capital Improvement projects in the amount of $406,213,908 are approved; and that $133,224,038 be appropriated in FY 2026 for these or similar projects, within the respective funds, as determined by the Service Area, and may be carried forward without regard to fiscal year;
RESOLVED, That the Technology Improvement projects in the amount of $1,385,000 be appropriated without regard to fiscal year;
RESOLVED, That a total 863 full-time equivalent positions be adopted in the FY 2026 budget;
RESOLVED, That as part of the workforce planning initiative, Council is authorizing staff to exceed the authorized 863 FTEs by 10 on a temporary basis;
RESOLVED, That the City Administrator be authorized to transfer funds between service units within the designated service areas or from Non-Departmental within the same fund, or from the City Administrator budget within the same fund;
RESOLVED, That any unspent FY 2025 City Administrator Contingency funding in the General Fund City Administrator service unit budget carry forward to FY 2026;
RESOLVED, That any unspent FY 2025 funding remaining in the FY 2025 Affordable Housing Millage fund carry forward to FY 2026 without regard to fiscal year;
RESOLVED, That any unspent DDA Grants included in the FY 2025 budget and approved by the DDA Board may be carried forward without regard to fiscal year;
RESOLVED, That any unspent DDA capital funds included in the FY 2025 budget and approved by the DDA Board may be carried forward without regard to fiscal year;
RESOLVED, That any unspent Bicentennial Celebration funding in the General Fund City Administrator service unit budget carry forward to FY 2026;
RESOLVED, That any unspent Gravel Roads Study funding in the General Fund Systems Planning service unit budget carry forward to FY 2026;
RESOLVED, That any unspent Compensation Study funding in the General Fund Human Resources service unit budget carry forward to FY 2026;
RESOLVED, That any unspent funding in the County Mental Health Millage Engineering service unit budget carry forward to FY 2026;
RESOLVED, That any unspent funding in the County Mental Health Millage Sustainability and Innovation service unit budget carry forward to FY 2026;
RESOLVED, That any unspent funding in the Climate Action Millage Engineering service unit budget carry forward to FY 2026;
RESOLVED, That the City Council approve the proposed FY 2026 Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti SmartZone LDFA budget, as a component unit of the City of Ann Arbor in Fiscal Year 2026 in a dedicated fund containing $6,749,527 in revenues and $6,749,527 in expenditures;
RESOLVED, That the following appropriations constitute the General Fund budget for FY 2026 (see attached file for full details);
RESOLVED, That the following other funds revenue and expenditure appropriations are adopted for FY 2026 budget (see attached file for full details); and
RESOLVED, That the following millages shall be levied for the City of Ann Arbor for FY 2026 (see attached file for full details):
