Laserfiche WebLink
MEMORANDUM <br />To: Mayor Tunheim and Orono City Council <br />From: Maggie Jin, Finance Director <br />Subject: 2026 Preliminary General Fund Budget and Tax Levy <br />Date: September 8, 2025 <br />Attachments: <br />A. Levy Detail <br />B. Estimated Tax Rate <br />C. Estimated Tax Rate Impact <br />D. Tax Comparison <br />E. 2026 General Fund Budget <br />a. 2026 General Fund Revenue Budget <br />b. 2026 General Fund Expenditure Budget <br />F. 07-28-2025 Work Session Memo <br />Work has been progressing on the 2026 budget. The draft preliminary General Fund budget and <br />tax levy was presented at the July 28 Council work session. Since then, staff have been refining <br />the budget as updated numbers are received and per the direction of City Council to reduce tax <br />rate while maintaining needs. Tonight's information is being presented in advance of the <br />adoption of the preliminary budget and tax levy that will occur on September 22, 2025. By <br />statute, the city must adopt and certify the preliminary tax levy to Hennepin County by <br />September 30. <br />The projected tax rate with the updated preliminary budget comes in at 16.405% compared to the <br />previous version at 16.797%. The rate comes in lower than the last five-year average tax rate <br />(16.576%) and slightly higher than current year 2025 rate of 16.361%. The overall tax levy is <br />anticipated to increase 6.72% or $647,500. The General Fund budget is anticipated to increase <br />4.57% or $545,550. <br />There are a couple of variables that could still impact the budget and the tax rate: <br />• Wages — the City is currently undergoing union negotiation to determine the wage <br />increase for staff. <br />• Health Insurance — the City is currently undergoing union negotiation with City <br />contribution not yet agreed upon. Additionally, the City is undergoing a request for <br />proposal (RFP) for health insurance. The City will not receive the actual amount of any <br />rate increase until the end of September or early October. <br />• Property Values — The final property values will not be received from the Hennepin <br />County Assessor until after year-end. The tax rate calculations are based on the most <br />recent numbers available as of mid -August and generally do not change significantly in <br />either direction between now and the final. <br />09/08/2025 Preliminary General Fund Budget and Tax Levy Page 1 of 59 3 <br />