Press Release: Mayor Buckley Introduces Fiscal Year 2026 Spending Plan at Monday City Council

Office of Mayor Gavin Buckley
PRESS RELEASE

City of Annapolis
160 Duke of Gloucester Street
Annapolis, Maryland 21401

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE :
Mitchelle Stephenson, 410-972-7724 or mwstephenson@annapolis.gov

Mayor Buckley Introduces Fiscal Year 2026 Spending Plan

at Monday City Council Meeting

ANNAPOLIS, MD (April 14, 2025) - After nearly eight years in office, Annapolis Mayor Gavin Buckley will deliver his final "State of the City" address to the Annapolis City Council on Monday, April 14 at 7 p.m. The Mayor's Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) Budget will be introduced during the same meeting.

The FY26 budget includes $199 million in operating expenses city-wide alongside $30.2 million in capital expenditures. There are no property tax rate increases included in the Mayor's budget ordinance proposal.

"I'm proud that we have been good stewards of taxpayer dollars and can enter FY26 in a strong financial position," said Mayor Buckley. "We are once again submitting a balanced budget with no property tax increase. We have also positioned ourselves for the uncertain national economic forecast. This budget allows us to continue to deliver the services our residents, businesses, and visitors need and want."

The FY26 operating budget reflects $122,291,400 in general fund expenditures. These include operations for Police ($31M); Fire ($28M); Planning and Zoning ($6M); Recreation and Parks ($8.5M); Department of Public Works ($7.3M) - and funding for 2025 Municipal Elections ($312,100).

In the FY26 capital budget, the City will fund infrastructure projects, including:

• $1.3 million in continuing funding for remediation of the athletic fields at Weems Whalen fields.

• $93,250 in capital expenditures for a pedestrian activated crosswalk on Bembe Beach Road

• New and continuing funding for improvements at City parks including Waterworks ($336,000); Wells Cove ($105,000); Annapolis Gateway Park ($1M); and Conduit Street ($368,500).

The Budget Process:

On Monday, April 14, 2025, Mayor Gavin Buckley will introduce the Fiscal Year 2026 Mayor's Budget as a City ordinance.

Next, the Finance Committee, a standing committee of the City Council chaired by Alderman Harry Huntley (Democrat, Ward 1), with Alderwoman Karma O'Neill (Democrat, Ward 2) and Alderwoman Sheila Finlayson (Democrat, Ward 4), will review and make recommendations to the Operating and Capital portions of the budget. This review takes place over several weeks and multiple Finance Committee meetings that will be broadcast on City TV channels, City of Annapolis YouTube and City of Annapolis Facebook.

Two citizen commissions also conduct reviews and can recommend amendments or changes: the Planning Commission may review and make recommendations to the Capital Budget; the Financial Advisory Commission may review and make recommendations to both the Operating and Capital Budgets. Once the commissions' recommendations are sent to the Finance Committee and amendments agreed to by the Committee, a recommended budget is sent to the City Council to be further amended and adopted.

Council members may adopt the Mayor's Budget as-is. The Council will consider the recommendations of the Finance Committee. They may elect to move money within departments or between departments. They may come up with new spending. However, the Council must pass a balanced budget. If new appropriations are added, there needs to be a commensurate revenue increase (taxes or fines) to pay for the increases or a cut somewhere else in the budget.

The final date for passage of the final adopted City Budget is June 30. Fiscal Year 2026 begins July 1, 2025.

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