New Baltimore’s elected officials, department heads and non-union employees will see pay hikes this fiscal year as part of a new city budget.

The city council on June 23 adopted a $9.3 million budget for 2025-2026 and set millage rates for the fiscal year, which runs from July 1 to June 30, 2026. The budget includes a 6% pay bump for department heads, including the city clerk and treasurer, and a 3% increase for other elected officials and non-union employees. Additionally, the fire chief will receive a $10,000 salary increase in November.

The council voted 3-3 to approve the budget and pay raises, with council members David Duffy, Mel Eason and Jason Harvey voting no. Mayor Tom Semaan broke the tie, per the city charter, casting the deciding yes vote. The motion was made by Mayor Pro-Tem Flo Hayman and supported by council member Jacob Dittrich.

General fund revenues are budgeted at about $9.33 million for the current fiscal year, with expenditures of about $9.36 million. The general fund is estimated to end the fiscal year with a fund balance of about $4.5 million, down about $25,000 from the start of the fiscal year.

Property taxes are estimated to comprise more than half of general fund revenues at nearly $5.3 million, an increase of about $280,000 from the previous year. Police department costs make up more than 40% of budgeted general fund expenditures at about $3.9 million.

General fund appropriations also include about $1 million for refuse collection, roughly $600,000 for the clerk’s office and about $530,000 for parks and recreation. Additional parks and recreation expenditures include about $460,000 for building and grounds, nearly $190,000 for summer programs and about $90,000 for athletic fields.

City millage rates are as follows: City operating millage, 9.0354 mills; fire department millage, 0.9901 mills; city water debt, 1.6616 mills. The total city millage rate is 11.6871 mills, a decrease of .1005 mills from last year.

Treasurer Jeanne Bade said the millage rates for city operating and the fire department are the same as last year, as there was no Headlee rollback this year.

She also said the city will reach the end of its water debt millage levy in four or five years. The bond millage rate is calculated annually using the taxable value of all property in the city, which for 2025 is about $579 million. The levy is expected to generate about $960,000 for water debt bond payments.

The fire millage, passed by voters in 2021, funds staffing and other operational costs of the fire department.

The council voted unanimously to adopt the new millage rates. The motion to approve the rates was made by Duffy and supported by council member Ryan Covert.

A public hearing on the budget and millage rates took place prior to the vote. No one from the public spoke.