Common Council wants to maximize public input during 2026 budget process

Alderwoman Marina Dimitrijevic, Chair of the Common Council’s Finance and Personnel Committee, and Alderman Peter Burgelis, Finance and Personnel Committee Vice-Chair, are encouraging residents to follow along with and participate in the city’s 2026 budget process that begins next week when Mayor Cavalier Johnson presents his recommended budget to the Common Council on Tuesday, September 23.

“One of the Common Council’s biggest and most important undertakings every year is reviewing and amending the Mayor’s proposed budget,” said Alderwoman Dimitrijevic. “As chair of the Finance and Personnel Committee, I have increased the opportunities for the most important voices to be heard – yours.”

There will be two meetings for residents to provide their input regarding the 2026 city budget. The first will be the Joint Public Hearing on the Mayor’s proposed 2026 budget. This opportunity for input will take place on Monday, October 6 at 6:30 p.m. in the Common Council Chamber at City Hall, 200 E. Wells St. This hearing is in-person only.

The second opportunity for public input will be a new Finance and Personnel Committee Public Input Meeting. This will take place on Saturday, October 18 at 9:30 a.m. at the new MLK Library, 2901 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. This event will be in-person but those wishing to provide input virtually may do so by registering in advance here. The MLK Library is full of great resources and activities for children, so the whole family is encouraged to attend.

Also new this year, a public engagement survey is available for those unable to attend the public meetings, or for those wishing to provide further feedback. The brief survey can be accessed here.

“The city budget isn’t just dollars and cents on paper, it’s a two billion dollar statement of our community’s values and priorities for the year ahead. That’s why resident feedback is invaluable. We want every resident’s voice at the table, whether through a public meeting or the new survey, because a budget built with the community will always be stronger than one built without it,” said Alderman Peter Burgelis.

The Common Council’s Finance and Personnel Committee will begin to hear budget presentations from city departments on Friday, October 3, and those presentations will run through Friday, October 17. The full schedule of hearings can be found online at Milwaukee.gov/CommonCouncil/Finance. All meetings will be broadcast on the City Channel (channel 25 on Spectrum Cable and channel 99 on AT&T U-Verse in the City of Milwaukee) and via streaming video on the city website at city.milwaukee.gov/Channel25.

At the conclusion of department hearings and after receiving public input, Council Members will be able to propose budget amendments that will be heard on Friday, October 31 at 9 a.m. The final budget will be adopted on Friday, November 7 at the Common Council meeting at 9 a.m.

All budget related items heard by the Finance and Personnel Committee will be part of Common Council file # 250001 – communication from the Mayor relating to the proposed 2026 budget. All supporting items, including department presentations and budget amendments, can be viewed as part of the file here once provided to the committee.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.