Huntsville approves budget after marathon council meeting
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Thursday's Huntsville City Council meeting wrapped up around 11:40pm. Photo: Derek Lacey/Axios
The Huntsville City Council approved its 2027 budget last week at a long, contentious meeting.
The big picture: The $360-million budget takes effect Oct. 1 and provides a 2% cost-of-living adjustment for city employees. The council also approved changes to the city's organizational chart and pay scales for police officers and firefighters.
- Find breakdowns of the budget here.
The intrigue: The meeting ran about six hours as the council worked through proposals and butted heads on procedural rules, while residents continued to pressure the council to abandon automated license plate readers like Flock cameras.
- District 5 Council member John Meredith made a motion to not renew current ALPR contracts and bring future ALPR-related expenditures up for council votes, but it failed 3-2 with District 1 Council member Michelle Watkins voting with him.
👔 New org chart
As Shane Davis, Huntsville's director of urban and economic development, prepares to retire next month, the city approved a new organizational structure Thursday night.
- Among other changes, it creates an Office of Infrastructure Development and a new position, senior director of engineering, while amending the title and duties of what's now the external affairs and industrial recruitment officer.
🚨 Public safety pay shift
Changes to the city's pay scale for firefighters and police officers made Thursday will increase pay between 4%-7% for employees with at least five years of service, aimed at retaining mid- and higher-level positions where city pay is lagging.
- That figure includes the blanket 2% cost-of-living adjustment for city employees.
🎧 Hearing aid tax relief
The council voted unanimously to remove the city's sales tax on hearing aids, which will take effect Sept. 1, 2027, and run through Oct. 31, 2029, after a motion from Meredith to extend its duration passed unanimously.
📍 Another Limestone annexation
The council also approved the 263-acre LeCroix Farms annexation, located south of Huntsville Brownsferry Road and west of Greenbrier Parkway, where construction of single-family homes is planned, per the city.
⚡️ TVA data center rate
The council OK'd a rate change amendment to align with data center rate changes approved by the TVA at its Aug. 20 board meeting, leaving residential rates unchanged.
- Asked how much energy is being used by the Meta data center in Huntsville, TVA representative Robby Jones said the TVA's contract with Meta forbids him from disclosing that information.