OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Annapolis City Council Work Session – Budget Overview – April 16, 2026

City Council — Thursday, April 16, 2026
BodyAnnapolis, Maryland
SessionCity Council
DateThursday, April 16, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:39:28

Transcript — Verbatim
0:05

Thank you.

0:08

The work session of the Annapolis City Council for Thursday, April 16th, 2026, will be called to order at 5 p.m.

0:19

At this time, would everyone willing and able please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.

0:26

Pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States.

0:30

And to the Republic.

0:32

For which it stands.

0:33

One nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

0:39

Thank you.

0:43

City attorney, please call the next item on the.

0:46

I'm sorry.

0:47

Yes, please present the next item on the agenda.

0:49

First item on the agenda is ID 7726 budget overview and review of the city council budget binder.

0:56

Thank you.

0:57

And thank you both for being here.

1:00

Would you please identify yourselves and help us begin the presentation in any context you want to dive in?

1:07

I would um recommend we start with just an overview of what we hope to accomplish today.

1:12

And I'll share in advance that I'm not expecting.

1:16

So two things.

1:18

We are need being asked to be done by 6.45 for because it's a planning commission meeting by 7.

1:24

Really, I was asked to 6 30, but I'm saying 6 45.

1:27

I'm not expecting to finish everything we want to finish today.

1:29

So I've already added this to the agenda for Monday, April 27th, to continue this conversation as one of the agenda items.

1:36

So don't feel the pressure to um if we don't finish by 6.45, we're just continuing the conversation.

1:42

Along those lines, I'll also add for the April 27th meeting.

1:46

I intend to have the first public hearing on the budget legislation, and at the end of that meeting, continue it to the next meeting and continue it and continue it so that um just so you all know it'll hopefully be clear on the agenda.

1:59

The idea is to have multiple public hearings so someone could comment in the beginning if they wish to, in the middle, or at the end, and once we need to end it, we'll end it.

2:07

Um but that's my intention for your communication purposes.

2:11

Okay.

2:11

Thank you.

2:12

So with all that, hopefully gave you time to set up and ready to go.

2:15

Yeah, I was clicking a lot.

2:18

Uh Vicky Becklin, acting city manager, and Al Cal, uh, acting finance director.

2:26

Um good.

2:27

Go ahead.

2:28

I'm happy to defer.

2:30

Uh obviously there's a lot of work that goes into this all the time.

2:34

Uh, as you can appreciate um this year, uh given administrative administration change, changes in council, changes in finance.

2:44

Um pulling this together has required it always requires a village.

2:49

It particularly uh required a village this year.

2:52

Um, and I very, very much appreciate the engagement of uh the departments um and especially Department of Finance and particularly the budget team.

3:02

Um Capri Turner, Darren Johnson, Suzanne Flaherty put in real yeoman's work.

3:08

Um, Jake Trudeau um has stayed and also provided support to the budget development and really appreciate his involvement in that.

3:17

So um, and obviously um ably led by uh Joel, who will be doing the presentation today.

3:26

Remember, this is an overview.

3:28

We'll be getting into a lot more details as time goes on.

3:31

Um take it away, Joel.

3:34

Sure.

3:34

So thank you very much.

3:36

Um she didn't thank herself for all of the time she spent sitting in directors' meetings as well as with all of you and learning about your initiatives and everything else.

3:45

So she has shepherded this process immaculately through to allow us to have delivered it on time and now have this meeting.

3:52

So excited to work with you all and work through this uh activity.

3:57

But I do need to give a huge shout out to Kaelin over here for getting you guys these budget books that are uh and Capri as well for other folks who may be attending.

4:08

Uh so just huge team effort all around, and just really really thankful for everyone that's been part of this process to really get us here.

4:15

So uh starting with that, but uh I have a presentation prepared, uh, but I think the very first thing that I wanted to do uh as a counter to the budget books that are now in front of you is make sure you understand how to engage with the website.

4:31

Uh so I'm just gonna spend a quick five minutes on that just to make sure folks haven't had the opportunity yet.

4:37

But uh skipping forward in the steps of getting to the city government page and then moving to the budgets proposed and adopted.

4:46

You'll see that there are both the fiscal year 2027 proposed capital budget hyperlink.

4:52

That one will take you to what is a PDF, very consistent with what you guys have seen in the past, and then underneath of the operating budget, there is a section that says fiscal year 2027 proposed annual operating budget.

5:00

And then underneath of the operating budget, there is a section that says fiscal year 2027 proposed annual operating budget.

5:05

Is that my computer?

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Fiscal Sustainability█████████████████████████████████████████████79%
Public Safety███6%
Procedural███5%
Technology and Innovation██4%
Water And Wastewater Management██4%
Public Engagement█1%
Affordable Housing█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Annapolis City Council Work Session – Budget Overview and Review – April 16, 2026

The Annapolis City Council held a work session on April 16, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. to review the proposed Fiscal Year 2027 budget. Acting City Manager Vicky Becklin and Acting Finance Director Al Cal presented an overview of the budget binder, covering revenue trends, expenditures, enterprise funds, capital improvement program, and debt capacity. The session was intended as a high-level review, with a continuation scheduled for the April 27 regular council meeting. Key discussions focused on fund balance policies, one-time use funds, staffing levels, and enterprise fund rate increases.

Discussion Items

  • Budget Fundamentals: Presenter Joel outlined the four roles of a budget (policy document, financial plan, operations guide, communications tool) and explained the city’s fund structure, including general fund, enterprise funds, special revenue funds, and internal service funds.
  • Revenue Trends: General fund revenue is projected at $122 million, with $75 million from real property taxes. Property assessments have grown from $8.1 billion in FY23 to $9.8 billion in FY27, driven by reassessments and home sales. The city has not raised property tax rates.
  • Fund Balance and One-Time Use: The city maintains a 15% unassigned fund balance reserve. The proposed budget uses $1.9 million in one-time funds, exhausting the available balance. Alderman Savage questioned the reduction in one-time funds; officials explained that improved expenditure forecasting and the expiration of COVID funds contributed to lower availability. The mayor emphasized that all one-time funds have been thoughtfully allocated to specific projects.
  • Expenditures: Staffing remains nearly flat (671 full-time positions in FY26 vs. 674 proposed for FY27). The police department’s budget appears to decrease from $31.1 million to $30.3 million due to a higher vacancy adjustment ($2 million vs. $1.2 million). Fire department funding increased for a peak-time medic unit and training administrators. Office of Emergency Management’s budget increased to address grant uncertainty.
  • Enterprise Funds: The budget proposes rate increases for sewer (9.5%), water (9%), and refuse (7%) to sustain operations and capital needs. Without increases, sewer and water funds would deplete by 2031. Alderman Savage expressed concern about fund balance usage; staff noted that conservative budgeting and project delays often cause lower-than-projected expenditures.
  • Capital Improvement Program (CIP): The FY27-32 CIP proposes $14.1 million in bond authorization, totaling $92 million over the six-year period. Major projects include fleet replacement, fire station replacements, and potential city office space. Debt capacity remains within policy limits (10% target, 12% ceiling), though FY29 may briefly exceed 10% before declining.
  • Debt Capacity: Bond ratings remain strong. Officials highlighted the importance of maintaining reserves to support future capital needs. Mayor noted that fully funding fleet replacement required $4.4 million annually; after a state grant for medic vehicles, the budget allocated approximately $3 million.

Key Outcomes

  • The work session did not conclude the budget review; discussion will continue at the April 27 regular council meeting at 7:00 p.m. (following a closed session at 6:00 p.m.).
  • The mayor plans to hold multiple public hearings on the budget legislation, starting April 27, to allow input at various points.
  • Mayor announced intention to withdraw the mooring ball legislation for revision and resubmission after DNR comments.
  • Council members agreed to an informal meeting (rather than closed session) to meet the candidate for finance director, to be scheduled before the April 27 confirmation vote.
  • Staff will provide council members with the current pay grade scales and a list of vacant positions for further review.
  • Director of Finance urged council members to submit questions in advance of departmental budget hearings and to include his office in communications.

Meeting Transcript

Thank you. The work session of the Annapolis City Council for Thursday, April 16th, 2026, will be called to order at 5 p.m. At this time, would everyone willing and able please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. Pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States. And to the Republic. For which it stands. One nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. City attorney, please call the next item on the. I'm sorry. Yes, please present the next item on the agenda. First item on the agenda is ID 7726 budget overview and review of the city council budget binder. Thank you. And thank you both for being here. Would you please identify yourselves and help us begin the presentation in any context you want to dive in? I would um recommend we start with just an overview of what we hope to accomplish today. And I'll share in advance that I'm not expecting. So two things. We are need being asked to be done by 6.45 for because it's a planning commission meeting by 7. Really, I was asked to 6 30, but I'm saying 6 45. I'm not expecting to finish everything we want to finish today. So I've already added this to the agenda for Monday, April 27th, to continue this conversation as one of the agenda items. So don't feel the pressure to um if we don't finish by 6.45, we're just continuing the conversation. Along those lines, I'll also add for the April 27th meeting. I intend to have the first public hearing on the budget legislation, and at the end of that meeting, continue it to the next meeting and continue it and continue it so that um just so you all know it'll hopefully be clear on the agenda. The idea is to have multiple public hearings so someone could comment in the beginning if they wish to, in the middle, or at the end, and once we need to end it, we'll end it. Um but that's my intention for your communication purposes. Okay. Thank you. So with all that, hopefully gave you time to set up and ready to go. Yeah, I was clicking a lot. Uh Vicky Becklin, acting city manager, and Al Cal, uh, acting finance director. Um good. Go ahead. I'm happy to defer. Uh obviously there's a lot of work that goes into this all the time. Uh, as you can appreciate um this year, uh given administrative administration change, changes in council, changes in finance. Um pulling this together has required it always requires a village. It particularly uh required a village this year. Um, and I very, very much appreciate the engagement of uh the departments um and especially Department of Finance and particularly the budget team. Um Capri Turner, Darren Johnson, Suzanne Flaherty put in real yeoman's work. Um, Jake Trudeau um has stayed and also provided support to the budget development and really appreciate his involvement in that. So um, and obviously um ably led by uh Joel, who will be doing the presentation today. Remember, this is an overview. We'll be getting into a lot more details as time goes on. Um take it away, Joel. Sure. So thank you very much. Um she didn't thank herself for all of the time she spent sitting in directors' meetings as well as with all of you and learning about your initiatives and everything else. So she has shepherded this process immaculately through to allow us to have delivered it on time and now have this meeting.

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