Bellingham City Council Budget Work Session: October 5th, 2026

The Bellingham City Council’s October 5, 2026 special budget work session reviewed preliminary 2027 budgets for finance, legal, human resources, IT, communications, planning and community development, and the mayor’s office. The proposed citywide budget was about $542.8 million, compared with $542.9 million in the prior year’s preliminary budget. A new central services fund will consolidate finance, HR, and part of legal, making departmental costs and internal service charges more visible; officials said the change largely shifts where costs are recorded rather than reducing overall spending. No budget motions or votes, contract awards, or bid approvals were reported.

Procurement- and spending-related discussions included IT’s nearly $1 million Microsoft contract, planned utility billing and payment-system upgrades, and about $200,000 in 2027 capital funding to operationalize Workday, including staff-cost reimbursement and consultant support. The communications department plans to develop requirements and issue an RFP for a future website content-management system; no vendor has been selected. IT and police also plan a joint consultant-supported audit of criminal justice information-system practices. Planning staff noted about $11 million committed to housing projects, including Unity and an Oldtown project. Council members and staff discussed reserve levels, rising costs, and potential cost reductions if a proposed revenue measure does not pass, but took no related action at this session.