Mayor Proposes Mid-Biennium Budget Adjustments
Published on August 08, 2025
Funding included for police and fire pension, 911 dispatch, transit, and pools
Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird today said her proposed mid-biennium budget adjustments make important investments in growing a safe and successful community. The City Council public hearing on the proposed budget adjustments is Monday, August 18, and the Council is scheduled to vote on the budget adjustments Monday, August 25.
The City adopted a two-year (biennial) budget in August 2024. Adjustments made at the biennial budget midpoint in August 2025 are based on actual revenues versus projections, contract obligations, and emergent needs not foreseen when the budget was adopted.
Mayor Gaylor Baird’s proposed mid-biennium adjustments include:
- Additional investment into the police and fire pension ($936,000): The police and fire pension is funded in each year of the biennial budget. The City hires an independent actuarial firm to perform an annual analysis of the pension to determine both the amount required to be budgeted and any adjustments required in the second year.
- Pay raise incentives for emergency service/911 dispatchers ($150,000): The City Council approved an increase in the pay rates for emergency service/911 dispatchers earlier this year in response to staffing shortages that were threatening to impact service and response.
- Funding to close StarTran’s operating budget gap ($1 million): StarTran is fully staffed and meeting service time goals. However, reduced state funding and increased staffing costs have created an operating budget deficit.
- Transferring funds into the pools maintenance and repair contingency fund to address aging pools in all four quadrants of the city ($1.5 million): Many community pools are 60 to 70 years old and experiencing higher rates of repair and maintenance due to mechanical and structural failures.
- Debt service for voter-approved November 2024 stormwater bond ($764,940)
“The proposed mid-biennium budget adjustments are necessary to address updated financial obligations and emergent community needs,” Mayor Gaylor Baird said. “They are part of the City’s overall budget investments that reflect our ongoing commitment to public safety, economic vitality, and a high quality of life.”
The proposed mid-biennium budget adjustments total $4.35 million. The City is not proposing any change to the overall property tax levy other than the amount approved by voters on the November 4, 2024, ballot. This amount, $764,940, finances the voter-approved stormwater improvement bond. The cost of the other mid-biennium budget adjustments will be covered by growth in sales tax revenue and property tax valuation. The second year of the biennial budget was based on an 8% property valuation increase by the Lancaster County Assessor. The final valuation figures will be available Wednesday, August 20, but current projections are at 9%. If those projections hold, they will provide an additional $1.08 million in revenue. Higher than anticipated sales tax revenue would provide the remaining $2.5 million balance of funding needed to cover the total cost of the adjustments.
City government receives approximately 17% of the total property tax bill. This means that out of every property tax dollar paid by Lincoln residents, the City receives 17 cents. The Mayor’s proposed adjustments represent a 1.4% adjustment to the budget. The City’s revised FY2025-2026 tax-funded budget would be $301 million.