- Florence approved a $106.9 million Fiscal Year 2026-27 budget.
- Infrastructure remains a major priority.
- City leaders are implementing stronger financial controls amid an ongoing FBI investigation.
The City of Florence approved a new budget for the forthcoming fiscal year, with an emphasis on infrastructure spending.
Florence passed its annual budget ordinance at Tuesday’s meeting for the upcoming 2026-2027 Fiscal Year, focusing on six priorities: public safety, infrastructure, economic development, quality of life, transparency and safeguarding taxpayer dollars.
Many of the city’s budget initiatives were unveiled at a prior caucus meeting on June 2, when Mayor Julie Metzger-Aubuchon delivered her annual budget address to the city council and the general public.
The current fiscal year, 2025-2026, concludes on June 30, while the upcoming fiscal year begins on July 1.
Compared with the current fiscal year, Metzger-Aubuchon said the city’s general fund revenues are projected to increase by 2.4%. Revenues for the upcoming fiscal year’s general fund are expected to reach approximately $106.9 million. The figure is calculated by adding together estimated revenues, transfers, and the city’s estimated beginning fund balance. The budget’s total expenditures and transfers amount to $57.8 million, while the projected year-end reserves are around $49 million.
Florence derives 40% of its general fund revenue from occupational license fee taxes, commonly known as payroll taxes, followed by business license taxes, insurance premium taxes and personal property taxes.
“For this upcoming fiscal year, total general fund revenues are projected to grow at a healthy 2.4% rate next year, despite additional projected property tax cuts and an insurance premium tax rate reduction, which will go into effect next fiscal year,” she said during her budget address. “The city’s largest tax revenue, the payroll tax, is also expected to grow, but at a slower rate at 1% rate as hiring growth shows signs of slowing.”
Florence’s infrastructure fund remains one of the city’s largest capital investment accounts. The fund is projected to receive $5.24 million in revenue and transfers and will begin the fiscal year with a balance of $30.26 million. With nearly $35.5 million in total available resources, the city intends to allocate around $6.87 million for infrastructure projects, resulting in an estimated year-end balance of $28.63 million.
Another key category within the budget includes the municipal road aid fund, which is projected to receive $865,000 in revenue and transfers during the upcoming fiscal year. Combined with an estimated beginning balance of approximately $1.4 million, the fund will have around $2.3 million available for road-related projects and maintenance. The fund’s expenditures will sit around $1.47 million.
Metzger-Aubuchon also addressed the ongoing FBI investigation into past ‘revenue diversions’ found by the city’s financial department. In January, Florence revealed that it had asked the FBI to open a criminal investigation after city staff identified a diversion in a “specific revenue stream” during the city’s recent finance department reorganization.
With the FBI’s investigation ongoing, Metzger-Aubuchon announced that the city had commissioned Dean Dorton, a Fort Wright-based accounting firm, to conduct an independent risk assessment and controls audit. The mayor revealed that the firm’s audit identified 30 preliminary findings related to governance, oversight, documentation, and segregation of duties.
Metzger-Aubuchon pledged to publicly release all findings once the FBI investigation concludes.
“Although certain audit and investigative materials remain limited due to the ongoing federal investigation, the city obtained sufficient financial information to evaluate prior year trends and prepare a responsible and balanced budget for the coming fiscal year,” she said.
After adopting the budget on June 9, city council approved an ordinance that revised several job descriptions, authorized new roles and updated the city’s pay plan. Metzger-Aubuchon said their aim was to enhance financial controls, improve segregation of duties, clarify responsibilities and reporting lines and reduce organizational risk. This action was largely taken in response to the aforementioned investigation.
Finance Director Jason Lewis explained the city’s rationale at the caucus meeting on June 2.
“It’s all about governance, controls, segregation of duties – things that, frankly, we haven’t been doing that we need to do,” he said.