On September 12, 2025, from 1:07 PM to 3:00 PM, the Anchorage Assembly held a work session to review the administration's 120-day memo, which provides preliminary revenue estimates, tax limit calculations, and budget priorities for the 2026 fiscal year. The meeting included presentations by Mayor LaFrance and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Brawley, followed by discussion with assembly members. Key topics included the tax cap, declining state funding, capital project prioritization, and organizational changes.
Not hearing anyone else on the phone. As soon as Miss Brawley comes around the corner, we'll get started. We're on the record from one to 3 p.m. It's now 107 p.m. We're getting a bit of a late. Start start with introductions, Mr. Gerker. Chair Gerger here. Daniel Ball. Anna Brawley. Christopher Constant. Yara Silvers. On the phone, Mr. Myers. Yes, thanks, Chair. Thanks. Anyone else on the phone? All right. So it feels like we're having a little feedback with the mic. So just make sure when you're not talking, you turn your mic off. With that, then I'm gonna let the budget go chairs make brief introduction and then we'll hand it over to the administration. Yeah, and I'll be very brief because this is really the administration's presentation, but um this is kind of one of our first official uh briefings on a piece of the budget. So they'll go through kind of what that is and why. Um so thank you everybody for being here. And I will just also refer back on Tuesday, we passed our um assembly resolution on budget priorities. Um, I am blanking on the number of that, um, but um hoping to continue that conversation of how those high-level priorities are reflected in the budget and as we move through the process. So um with that, I'm gonna turn it over to others. All right, anything else to add from the budget? No, okay. Ms. Brows. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I would like to ask the mayor to open us up here with some remarks about our 120 memo. Thank you, Director Brouse, and thank you, Mr. Chair. So hello, everyone. Thank you for making time to be here today. And as we get begin the budgeting process for 2026, as you know, we're also celebrating the municipality's 50th anniversary. It's a great time to really think about where we are as a community and how we got here. It's also a great time to have open direct conversations with each other and community members about our budget challenges, our community needs, and where we want to be in the next five, 10 or 50 years. The municipal budget is a plan for turning our values and priorities into action. It's a roadmap to our community's future. My administration is committed to working with the assembly and the public to build a stronger, more resilient, more affordable, and safer anchorage for all. We all know the municipality's resources are limited. Our operating budget relies mostly on property taxes. We are bound by the tax cap. Like me, you all probably hear daily from residents about road repairs, camp abatements, fire and police response, park maintenance, and more. And we're prioritizing investments in community development, parks and trails, libraries, housing solutions, and other steps to ensure Anchorage is an affordable place to live and attractive place to do business. And I just want to note too, when I say Anchorage, I'm referring to the municipality of Anchorage.