Georgetown City Manager David Morgan brought forward a preliminary fiscal year 2026-27 budget of $1.6 billion at a June 23 City Council meeting.
The overview
The city is prioritizing investments in roads, public safety and water infrastructure while managing population growth, Morgan said. The majority of the proposed budget is focused on infrastructure investment—totaling over $876 million—which is anticipated to be larger than the city's operational expenses.
While population growth is slowing down, property taxes and sales taxes are plateauing. At the same time, the city has increasing operational costs, Morgan said. To combat expenses outpacing revenue, the city suggested a $2 million cut from its base operating budget.
Digging deeper
The majority of operational expenses come from public safety costs. The budget proposes 10 new public safety positions, which include staffing for the fire station No. 8, which is scheduled to open in 2028, as well as adding two patrol officers and one detective, and funding an EMS substation to improve ambulance response times in west Georgetown.
Fire and police personnel will also receive compensation increases, averaging 5% for market adjustments as well as 2%-5% step increases.
What residents should know
Residents will experience various rate increases when the new budget is adopted in order to help fund utility projects and accommodate growth.
For water and wastewater, customers will see a 4% increase in the fixed water rate, a 14% increase in the water volumetric rate and a 12% wastewater rate increase, amounting to an average residential rate increase of about $14 per month combined.
Solid waste rates are proposed to increase by 5% for residential customers and 8% for commercial customers. The residential stormwater fee will increase by $1.50 per month.
There are no proposed rate increases for electric customers.
What they’re saying
Council members gave their input on the initial budget at the meeting. District 5 council member Kevin Pitts was absent for a portion of the meeting, but provided feedback ahead of time to suggest pausing the Blue Hole Park renovation project.
“He believes that ... we've got other road priorities that take precedence over it,” Mayor Josh Schroeder said. “I know that's a change from the path we've been on.”
Blue Hole Park improvements have a $7.9 million price tag included in the Capital Improvement Project fund, according to city documents. District 6 council member Jake French said he would prefer to move forward with the project.
“I understand some of his concerns,” French said. “If everybody else is in agreement, my recommendation would be to leave it in and then have a discussion about it down the road.”
What’s next
City officials plan to file the FY 2026-27 budget to the city secretary by Aug. 3 and send it to council members for review.
At the Aug. 11 City Council meeting, Morgan will present the official proposed budget, set a maximum tax rate and establish the dates for public hearings.
Council members plan to adopt the budget by Sept. 8.
