The Decatur City Council unanimously approved Ordinance 25 4 6 1 6, adopting the citys fiscal year 2026 budget beginning Oct. 1, 2025. The motion was made by Mr. Pfeiffer and seconded by Mr. Pepper; the council recorded aye votes and the ordinance passed by roll call.

Members of the public who spoke during the meeting asked for more detail about specific budget items and public access to the citys P2 (priority/project) list. One resident asked, "How can who is gonna justify that $317,000 to the citizens of Decatur for your mayor's budget item?" and urged that the P2 list be published rather than requiring FOIA requests that can carry costs for citizens.

Why it matters: The adopted budget exceeds $100 million, according to remarks during the meeting, and includes notable increases and decreases across departments. Speakers pressed the council for transparency about how funds will be spent on community programs and special events and for clearer breakdowns in published budget documents.

Details and council discussion

Council members and staff said the budget process was a multi-month effort involving department heads. Kyle, identified in the meeting as "mayor of finance," and other staff fielded questions from councilmembers and members of the public. Council members thanked staff and outside agency partners for work on the budget.

Public comments and line-item questions centered on:
- A $317,000 allocation identified in the meeting for "Red Sage," which a speaker said had not been in the original FY2025 budget but is included in FY2026. A council speaker clarified the amount was included in this year's budget cycle and would be discussed in December when the contract or agreement is considered.
- Several event-related allocations tied to DDRA (Downtown Decatur Redevelopment Association) were mentioned by a speaker: a $300,000 trolley program (described as the "jolly trolley"), a $100,000 ice rink and a $100,000 Christmas tree over the past two years. Those items were described in the meeting as proposals DDRA presented for council consideration.
- A line labeled "culture" was discussed after a speaker noted a roughly 40% increase to that line; council staff described that line in the meeting as including maintenance and related apportionments.
- Youth services were noted by a speaker to show a $72,000 reduction compared with the previous years figures; staff said the P2 list and budget detail would clarify requests and allocations.
- Police compensation: the council approved a 5% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for the Police Department, described in the meeting as applied within personnel and police budgets. A speaker said the 5% COLA was adopted by the department instead of a $2,000-per-person increase; other departments received a 2% increase across the board.

Council remarks acknowledged gaps raised by speakers about occupancy and tourism data (hotel occupancy rates) that some councilmembers said would provide context for tourism-related revenues but were not briefed in detail during the public presentation.

Votes and next steps

The ordinance adopting the FY2026 budget was moved by Mr. Pfeiffer and seconded by Mr. Pepper and passed on a roll-call vote with all members voting aye. The council announced a special called meeting for canvassing at 5 p.m. on Sept. 29, 2025, ahead of the municipal runoff election on Sept. 30, 2025, and said the next regular council meeting will be Oct. 6, 2025, at 6 p.m.

The council and staff said more line-item detail (the P2 list) would be made available for review; members of the public asked that it be published proactively to avoid FOIA-request costs.