# Finance Committee Meeting - October 26, 2026

The City of Stevens Point Finance Committee met on October 26, 2026, for an initial discussion of the proposed 2027 operating budget and a multi-year financial forecast; no formal action or vote was taken. The proposed budget includes a 3.13% employee cost-of-living adjustment, a 15% health-insurance premium increase, and $90,000 more for software licensing. The city tax levy is projected to increase 8.73%, including restoration of the fire referendum levy. The presentation also proposed increasing the TIF District 6 downtown façade-improvement matching-grant budget from $100,000 to $200,000 for 2027, described as the program’s final practical construction year. A proposed increase to the water utility payment-in-lieu-of-taxes cap, from $870,000 to $900,000, would add $30,000 in revenue; it was discussed but not approved at this meeting.

The financial forecast presented by Ellers projects balanced operating budgets through 2031, assuming investment income remains around $1 million–$1.2 million, and models annual combined operating and debt-levy growth of about 4.5%. It incorporates planned capital projects and debt issuance, with general-obligation debt projected to reach $90.3 million by 2029, or about 91% of the city’s 3%-of-equalized-value debt limit under the no-growth scenario. Committee members also discussed tax-incremental financing district obligations and the possibility of closing districts early; no decision was made.

**Jurisdictions:** sled
**Industries:** Construction & Infrastructure
**Topics:** Physical Infrastructure, Grants & Funding
**Published:** October 26, 2026

### Sources
- [Finance Committee Meeting - October 26, 2026](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VN-SBhQ_Mq8) - City of Stevens Point