MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson unveiled a $2 billion budget proposal on Tuesday designed to tackle what he describes as one of the largest financial challenges the city has faced.
"We started with a gap of more than $100 million. That's one of the largest budget gaps the city has ever seen," Johnson said.
Watch: Milwaukee mayor proposes $2 billion budget to address city's ‘largest’ financial gap in years
The mayor announced plans to close the gap through three key approaches: careful withdrawals from reserve accounts, avoiding layoffs at departments by not filling vacant positions, and raising revenue expectations by increasing the property tax levy by 3% and raising the vehicle registration fee by $10.
Johnson believes these actions will fully fund the $2 billion budget.
Beyond addressing the financial shortfall, the mayor emphasized the need for public safety by recruiting the maximum number of people for the police academy.
"Recent deadly crashes in the city have alarmed me, and many other people across Milwaukee. But from the tragedies and the sadness, we are even more resolved to make sure that we increase safety in our streets," Johnson said.
The mayor said traffic deaths have declined in Milwaukee, attributing the improvement in part to traffic-calming measures that have been funded through previous budgets.
A joint public hearing on the budget is set for Monday, Oct. 6, at City Hall. Additionally, a public listening session is scheduled at the new MLK Library on Saturday, Oct. 18, from 9:30 to 11 a.m.
For residents unable to attend either meeting, an online survey is available to provide feedback. The survey is accessible at https://tinyurl.com/BudgetSurvey2026.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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