Council Questions Budget in Marathon Session; Passes First Reading

The Jackson City Council met in a marathon, two-hour session on Thursday to discuss the budget for the coming year and hammer out the monetary priorities for the city’s future.

After debating numerous issues, the Council unanimously approved a motion by Kenneth Patrick, seconded by Steve McIntosh, to approve the first reading of the 2025-2026 budget for the city, with the plan to get additional information before the second reading.  The budget must pass a second time and is slated for review at the regular meeting on June 19.

Following a work session where the Council discussed ideas and plans for the coming year, the Council worked through the first reading of the annual budget for 2026. 

The meeting started with a discussion of estimated revenues related to property taxes and the methods used to assess, calculate, and collect taxes on property.  The Council also discussed the impact that the removal of the twenty-nine FEMA buyout houses has on the tax rates paid by city residents.

Councilman Tommy Noble told the members gathered that he was concerned that “those of us that are left here in the city, end up paying more in taxes on our property, that may or may not go up in value because we have lost this other.”  Noble said, “That’s not fair to us.”

He told the Mayor and the County that he would be careful about the rates the city set and the tax burden that would result.  Noble said the people of Jackson “living here don’t need to have to pay extra for what the government has bought out.”

The Council discussed the three percent increase in the water bills that will automatically take effect on July 1.  Mayor Thomas addressed the process for calculating the city's water and sewer budget.  “The public needs to know that these two particular departments, water and sewer, run in a deficit,” Councilman Noble said.  “The city has been able to compensate and meet those payments for them.”  He said that the only way to cover that is to raise rates, “And we don’t want to do that.”

Council members questioned the estimated $17,000 in delinquent taxes the city expects to collect in the coming year.  The Council discussed the tax collection process and the possibility of selling the tax bill for the town.

The Council also looked at the estimated reduction of a fourth of the occupational tax traditionally collected by the city due to the loss of jobs and unemployment.  “We would not lose that if we could get more people working,” Mayor Thomas said.  “We have based these numbers on our past performance and what we think this year will bring to us.”

The Council also discussed the street budget, the needs of city employees, the sewer department, the general government budget, and many other issues.  Mayor Thomas said that they had budgeted a general five percent increase for most line items and a nine percent increase for health insurance in addition to the rise in utility costs and retirement fees.

“These numbers, we have worked and worked on.  I feel comfortable about all of these numbers,” Mayor Thomas said.  “I feel good about how we calculated the revenue and the needs of the departments,” she said.

The first reading was approved and is slated for another review at the regular meeting late this week.

The Council also discussed the proposed $568,000 Washington Avenue Sidewalk project to be completed with a federal grant.  “That’s a lot of money,” Mayor Thomas said as she described the plan to build a new sidewalk from Main Street up Washington Avenue to Jackson City School.

Council members questioned the cost and scope of the project, especially the city’s match of $129,000, of which $54,000 had been approved and will be paid to the city by the Kentucky General Assembly.

“We’re talking about half a million dollars for a sidewalk from the foot of the hill to City School,” Noble said with surprise.  “Half a million dollars.”  He and other members question what the new sidewalk will look like and where it will be constructed.  Mayor Thomas noted that the engineering work had not been completed.  “I need to know,” Noble said.  “If we’re going to spend that kind of money, I need to know.”

“I get it,” Mayor Thomas told the Council.  “That’s a lot of money.”

“For half a million dollars,” Noble said.  “We can do better.”

Councilperson Renee Haddix moved that the proposed resolution be tabled until the regular meeting on June 19.  The motion was seconded and approved.

The council also discussed the 2025 Municipal Road Aid funds received from the state.  The public hearing, which was advertised and occurred before the budget work session, was required by law.  No city residents attended the public hearing, and Mayor Thomas discussed her priority list, which included plans to pave Collier Avenue, Elm Street, Lincoln Avenue, and Pine Hill Drive.

Thomas told the Council that she had asked for input from the street department, the police, the fire department, and other city agencies to identify the “most damaged” city streets.  The mayor indicated that the quoted costs for those four streets were $175,700, based on a year-old estimate from Hinkle.  The Council took no action and did not change the priorities established by Thomas.

Four council members, Kenneth Patrick, Renee Haddix, Tommy Noble, and Steve McIntosh, were present for the discussion and special session.  Debbie Miller and Jason Hall were absent