LEBANON — The municipal budget is expected to result in a 0.7% increase on local property taxes next year.
To get to the less than 1% figure, the City Council cut $400,000 from the city manager’s initial spending plan Wednesday night and used other funds to further offset the tax burden.
Still, the move may fall short for some Lebanon residents who had called for a 0% local property tax increase for next year.
Last year, resident Patty Beek told the City Council that she was working two jobs and had cut her cable and gym memberships to make ends meet and afford her property taxes.
This year, Beek said she’s had to take on a third job, now works seven days a week and had to cut snow plowing and trash removal from her budget. She urged the council to make cuts wherever possible.
“I’m not here to ask for special treatment,” Beek said. “I’m here because the people living in modest so-called affordable housing, people working three jobs, are reaching the breaking point.”
City Manager Andrew Hosmer initially proposed a $46.5 million general fund operating budget, which would have resulted in an anticipated 3.7% increase to the local portion of the property tax rate.
Ahead of Wednesday’s meeting, Hosmer moved $510,000 from funds raised by the downtown Tax Increment Financing District to the general fund. The district around downtown Lebanon assesses special taxes on new development and renovations. The funds can be used to support the city and fund infrastructure improvements. He updated revenues to bring the budget down to a 2% tax rate increase
Also offsetting the tax burden is $2.38 million from the city’s unassigned fund balance.
A substantial budget increase last year, a citywide property reassessment that brought single-family home values up 37% on average and a vocal group of residents pushing for a 0% tax rate increase this year spurred the council to find additional cuts.
Longtime Councilor Tim McNamara, in particular, approached the meeting with his red pen poised.
He successfully advocated for about $175,000 in cuts. The changes included reducing the city’s contribution to Listen Community Services by about $30,000 to make the allocation match this year’s, and cutting wage and benefit appropriations in half for transitional help to replace a soon-retiring deputy assessor.
Lebanon provides funding to several human services agencies that support residents. All of the other agencies received level funding this year, McNamara said, while Listen was the only group to ask for an increase in appropriations.
The nonprofit asked for increased support this year because of a greater demand for services and decreasing state and federal funding sources that mean “demand is growing and it’s getting more complex,” Listen Executive Director Kristi Lenart-Rikert told the council last month.
There is no reason to provide more money to Listen in 2026 especially without giving more support to other organizations, McNamara argued. He pointed out that the nonprofit is unique in that Listen Thrift Stores provide a “very substantial source of income” with almost no inventory cost.
McNamara also spearheaded a series of piecemeal slashes to several departments, including eliminating funding for fireworks and snowplowing by an outside contractor and cutting allocations for outside consultants, overtime and electrical costs that were inadvertently over-budgeted.
The city is considering partnering with Hartford to do a joint fireworks show this Fourth of July. The council opted to cut funding for fireworks last year also. The last fireworks display the city sponsored was in August 2024.
Assistant Mayor Devin Wilkie convinced the group to cut $25,000 from a flexible spending account that employees can draw on for child care costs. The decision did not eliminate the benefit for employees, but decreased the reserve fund balance.
Councilor Chris Simon, in particular, heeded resident calls for a 0% tax rate increase. Simon unsuccessfully proposed cutting $385,000 (the difference needed to reach a 0% increase) from the city’s $1 million paving budget.
After negotiations, the council opted to draw down the paving allocation by $200,000.
The paving allocation has proven a popular source for budget cuts, with Simon spearheading a move last year to slash it substantially.
Councilor George Sykes, a state representative who serves on the House Transportation Committee and is a retired Lebanon firefighter, voted against the cut, arguing that deteriorating roads present risks not just to regular travelers, but to emergency services.
It would cost $2.2 million a year to maintain Lebanon’s roads without deterioration, based on an oft-cited 2023 study of Lebanon roadways by the University of New Hampshire Technology Transfer Center.
The overwhelming sentiment among the 20 or so community members who spoke at Wednesday’s meeting was that they want to see a 0% property tax rate increase.
Many residents specifically called out the wages and benefits offered to city employees, saying they were too high and include unreasonable year-over-year increases.
Most Lebanon city employees are union members and contracts were not renegotiated this year. The council approved a 3% general wage increase for city employees in 2026.
Residents also called on the city to find more creative ways to boost revenue streams, especially for nonresidents who use city services and infrastructure.
Lebanon is “lucky to have” amenities like the city pool, landfill and airport and these offerings “should see a profit,” resident Joan Townsend argued. She suggested that the city charge nonresidents more for these resources to offset some of the burden on residents.
The approved city budget will take effect Jan. 1.