The Dubuque City Council will hold a series of public meetings as part of the process to create the City of Dubuque’s budget for the fiscal year (FY) 2027, which runs from July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027. Residents and stakeholders are encouraged to participate in this process and provide input.

The budget process will begin on Monday, March 23, when the city council holds a public hearing to establish the maximum FY2027 property tax levy. At this public hearing, the only options available to the council are to approve the amount of proposed property tax dollars, or decrease it. The public hearing also allows any resident or stakeholder to provide feedback on the proposed tax rate and amount. Input can be given to council members at any time by contacting them directly. Contact information and a link to email all council members are available at cityofdubuque.org/councilcontacts

On Monday, April 6, City Manager Mike Van Milligen will present his recommended FY2027 budget to the council during their regularly scheduled meeting. More details are available at cityofdubuque.org/FY2027budget

The process continues with public meetings to review City department/division budget proposals before concluding with a final public hearing on Tuesday, April 28, to adopt the FY2027 Operating and Capital Budgets.

Budget Public Meeting Schedule: 

• Monday, March 23
  • Public Hearing to Establish Maximum FY2027 Property Tax Levy
• Monday, April 6
  • Recommended Budget Presentation
• Tuesday, April 7
  • Engineering
  • Public Works
  • Water
  • Water & Resource Recover Center
• Thursday, April 9
  • Housing and Community Development
  • Planning Services
  • Economic Development
  • Purchase of Services
  • Transportation Services
• Monday, April 13
  • Carnegie-Stout Public Library
  • Five Flags Civic Center
  • Grand River Conference Center
  • ImOn Ice Center
  • Recreation
  • Parks
• Wednesday, April 15
  • Human Resources
  • Information Technology
  • Communications
  • Finance
• Thursday, April 16
  • City Manager’s Office
  • City Council
  • City Clerk’s Office
  • City Attorney’s Office
• Tuesday, April 21
  • Dubuque Regional Airport
  • Office of Human Rights
  • Community Impact & Neighborhood Support
  • Multicultural Family Center
• Wednesday, April 22
  • Police
  • Fire
  • Emergency Management
  • Emergency Communications
  • Health Services
• Tuesday, April 28
  • Public Hearing to Adopt the Fiscal Year 2027 Budget

The public is invited to attend the public hearings and meetings in which staff from each department and division will present FY2027 budget information. All meetings begin at 6:30 p.m. (unless otherwise noted) in the City Council Chambers on the second floor of the Historic Federal Building at 350 W. Sixth St. and will be aired live on CityChannel Dubuque (Mediacom cable channel 8 and ImOn channel 5), streamed and archived on the City’s website at cityofdubuque.org/media, and streamed on the City’s Facebook page (facebook.com/cityofdubuque and YouTube channel (youtube.com/@CityofDubuqueGovernment).

The public can provide input in person or virtually through the GoToMeeting platform. Instructions can be found within the meeting agenda at cityofdubuque.org/agendas. Public input on the FY2027 budget may also be submitted online through the budget public comments form at cityofdubuque.org/FY2027budget. Residents may also contact City Council members at cityofdubuque.org/councilcontacts.

The recommended budget materials are expected to be available on the City of Dubuque website at cityofdubuque.org/FY2027budget and printed copies will be made available for checkout from the Carnegie-Stout Public Library Reference Desk on April 3. For more information, contact Chief Financial Officer Jennifer Larson at 563-589-4398 or jl*****@***********ue.org.