City proposes 10-cent taxrate cut in new budget

Olney property owners could see the City’s tax rate drop by nearly 10 cents under a proposed fiscal year 2026-27 budget approved by the City Council on Aug. 24.

The Council voted 4-0 to move forward with the no-new-revenue tax rate of $0.765223 per $100 valuation, about 10 cents below the City’s current rate. The proposed budget was built using the lower rate.

The Council also approved the proposed FY 2026-27 budget with one amendment and set a public hearing on the spending plan for Sept. 14.

City Administrator Andy Wolfe cautioned that state-mandated language in the budget makes the proposed property- tax revenue appear to increase substantially even though the City is using the no-new-revenue rate.

The proposed budget shows property- tax revenue increasing by $202,484.99, or 17.74 percent, over the amount budgeted last year. But Mr. Wolfe said that comparison is misleading because the City budgeted substantially less property- tax revenue last year than it actually collected.

For FY 2025-26, the Council budgeted $1.141 million in ad valorem tax revenue. Through late August, the City had already collected about $1.328 million.

“We budgeted $200,000 less than we were actually going to receive,” Mr. Wolfe told the Council.

Normally, moving to the no-new-revenue rate would produce only a small difference in revenue, primarily from new construction added to the tax rolls. This year, about $9,200 in additional revenue is expected from properties that were not on the previous year’s tax roll, Mr. Wolfe said.

The no-new-revenue rate is designed to generate roughly the same property- tax revenue from property that was taxed in both years, despite changes in appraised values.

The Council’s proposed budget also puts substantially more money toward Olney streets. Mr. Wolfe told councilmembers that he reduced the amount budgeted for attorney fees and moved the difference into streets, raising the proposed street allocation from $193,000 to $207,000. The City budgeted about $100,000 for streets in the current fiscal year.

Councilmembers also debated whether to move another $75,000 earmarked for improvements at Lake Cooper into streets.

They ultimately decided to leave the money devoted to the lake but broaden its purpose into a Lake Master Plan line item rather than immediately committing it to a fishing pier or convenience dock.

Councilmembers said the change would allow the City to coordinate future improvements with the Olney Economic Development Corporation and develop an overall plan before installing individual amenities that might later have to be relocated.

The $75,000 could become the beginning of a longer-term investment in Lake Cooper as the City and OEDC consider improvements to parking, fishing and boating access and other recreational amenities.

The Council unanimously approved the proposed budget with that change before taking the required record vote on the tax rate.

Councilmembers Sammy Livingston, Thea Sullivan, Chuck Stennett and Colson Ballard voted for the $0.765223 no-new-revenue rate, with no votes against it. Councilman Steven Nurre was absent.

The proposed budget and tax notices will be made available at City Hall, on the City website and through required newspaper publication before the Sept. 14 public hearing.