Jackson council opens FY2027 budget talks on $337M plan as councilwoman challenges revenue math and CFO says city still owed up to $9M on water arrangement
JACKSON — The Jackson City Council on Sept. 10 opened formal deliberations on a fiscal 2027 spending plan put at roughly $337 million across all city funds, with a councilwoman challenging the administration's revenue projections and the city's chief financial officer disclosing that between $7 million and $9 million is still owed to the city under its water system arrangement.
Council President Parkinson, who chairs the finance committee, opened discussion of the full budget document by telling colleagues that "the vast majority of that is money that we receive for a very specific purpose." He said the council's discussion would focus on the general fund — the portion over which the council has the most discretion — estimated at about $113.5 million.
The council then worked through proposed line-item amendments shifting money among police, fire, public works and planning department accounts before recessing without taking a final vote.
Councilwoman Clay questioned the revenue figures underpinning the plan, pointing to a prior year in which officials acknowledged miscalculating. Last year, she told finance staff, "the administration said we did bad math." She pressed staff for actual, rather than forecast, tax collection figures. "We do not need to use unreal numbers," she said.
City finance staff responded that final figures for the current fiscal year were not yet available and said they would provide historical comparison data.
Separately, Chief Financial Officer Jillian Caldwell told the council the city is still owed between $7 million and $9 million in payments related to its water system arrangement, predating a new payment schedule that began in January 2026. "We still have a significant amount that we have not received from before this new arrangement," Caldwell said, adding that the city is continuing to work to collect the outstanding funds.
The disclosure came in answer to a council question about whether the city would need to use general fund money to support its solid waste enterprise fund going forward.
The budget is the council's largest annual fiscal action. Most of the $337 million total is restricted funding tied to specific purposes, leaving the general fund as the main area of debate.