By Taylor Boyd and Jessica Dillon
The Martinsville City Council delayed action on the proposed fiscal year 2026-27 budget at its May 26 meeting, opting to table the measure on first reading while members explore additional spending reductions.
Council scheduled a budget work session for June 8 at 3 p.m. to review the proposal before bringing it back for consideration.
City Manager Rob Fincher said the proposed $122.5 million budget includes an increase in the real estate tax rate from 75.33 cents to 84 cents per $100 of assessed value.
The proposal includes “no change to personal property tax, no change to machinery and tool tax, no change to the local and state sales tax, no change to the meal tax,” he said.
Fincher said the budget also calls for increases in refuse collection fees. The charge for an individual living unit would rise to $25.66 per month. An 8-yard dumpster with scheduled collection would cost $33.62 per pickup, while on-demand collection would cost $38.97 per month.
“Businesses not using the dumpsters, which incur a twice-a-week pick-up, is $45.40. Uptown businesses using designated uptown dumpsters of $25.60 per month,” he said.
The proposal also includes a 6 percent increase in the electric power cost adjustment.
Several residents spoke during a public hearing, raising concerns about taxes and spending.
Michael Green questioned the Martinsville City Public Schools budget, comparing the division’s per-student costs to those of neighboring school systems.
“The closest thing that I could find to our size was the Patrick County Public School System,” Green said. “I found that their per student cost on their budget was coming in at $14,850, and ours presented $17,192 per student.”
Green said Franklin and Henry counties, both of which serve more students than Martinsville, also reported lower per-student costs.
Noting that city leaders have emphasized accountability and transparency, Green said the school system’s 40-person administration staff is top-heavy.
“We have more guidance counselors with less students and less teachers and less schools than Patrick County. They only have six, and their test results are way higher than ours,” he said.
With the low test scores compared to the national average, Green said he understands why a reading specialist position that would cost $85,000 at Martinsville High School was one of the nine new requested positions.
“Why aren’t we addressing the reading needs before they get to high school?” he asked. “Our proficiency in English and reading is showing that we need it, we need these positions, but why has it taken so long to find out the solution to solving some of these issues, and why are they now in the budget in such a tight fiscal budget year for the city?”
He suggested setting aside funding for the positions until they are filled rather than immediately allocating the full amount requested.
Resident Joey Martin focused on the impact higher taxes could have on city residents, adding that 25 percent of Martinsville residents are living in poverty.
“One in every four people you see are below the federal poverty guidelines, so every dollar you raise is a dollar they don’t have,” he said.
While he knows the desire is to grow and develop Martinsville, Martin said the city needs to be strategic in the plan to do so to ensure it doesn’t break people’s backs or prompt them to relocate.
“Balanced budget this year — will it be balanced next year, or will there be another increase?” he asked.
Fincher responded that city leaders do not want recurring tax increases.
“The desire is not to raise taxes,” he said. “But I think I mentioned before, we were kind of in a situation where it was put in a position where it was unreasonably low. We were not paying city taxes and expecting city services.”
Former Vice Mayor Jennifer Bowles urged the city to pursue consolidation or reversion with Henry County.
“I’m glad that council is considering consolidation. It’s a move that we should have made a long time ago,” Bowles said. “We don’t have the money. Consolidation needs to happen right now.”
Vice Mayor Kathy Lawson moved to approve the budget on first reading, stating that a motion and a second were needed for discussion. Mayor L.C. Jones seconded the motion.
Council member Aaron Rawls said that discussions about consolidation often center on shifting financial responsibility elsewhere and “making someone else pay.
“I really think that’s what’s going on in some people’s minds — just make somebody else pay for it,” Rawls said. “I think we’ve got to do something about our building here. Well, let’s get rid of the city and make the county do it. Who do you think the county’s going to tax to do it? You think they’re just going to suck it up? They are not.”
He pointed to the former Public Service Authority arrangement between Martinsville and Henry County as an example of consolidation efforts that proved contentious. It ended with a $10 million settlement in favor of Martinsville and bad blood between the two localities for years.
Rawls said there’s also almost no capital expense in the proposed budget
“That’s fire, that’s police,” he said. “They need cars, we need fire engines, we need hoses, we need to replace everything that they wear. We are lurking behind at least a 10 percent tax increase right on this one, and we’re accruing a year of capital expenses that we’re not making,” he said.
He added that city property tax billings have risen substantially in recent years.
“Which is a 21 percent increase on net billings for property tax for the citizens of Martinsville,” he said.
Rawls said the city should examine whether all funded programs and positions align with core municipal services. He also suggested Martinsville needs to modernize operations and prepare for future technological changes.
“We probably need to question, do we have positions that aren’t really core city services. We probably want to question … we know that people like doing the same thing in the city and interacting with us for the last 30 years, while every other city around us has modernized and cut their costs to do the same stuff.’ I know it’s hard, and it makes people complain, but we’re 25 years overdue on that, and then you have the AI era coming, we’ve not even touched that, we’re going to be so hard behind it’s just going to keep racking up our costs,” Rawls said.
Regarding the schools, Rawls noted enrollment declines occurring across the country and questioned whether the city’s facilities and administrative structure remain appropriate.
“We really need to start looking at why we need a huge administration building, why do we have these extra gyms, why do we have two elementary schools,” he said. “I know there’s discussions to consolidate schools.”
Rawls also said the school division should consider leadership changes.
“It’s time to change leadership, it’s time to turn the page on all of this stuff,” he said.
Council member Julian Mei said the city faces difficult decisions as it works to retain current employees and attract new ones.
“It’s so difficult to factor all of this in and also know where we are with revenue versus expenditures,” he said.
Mei said he could not support the budget because he was uncomfortable voting for a tax increase.
“I know it has to be done, I know that there’s no other way around it,” he said. “I just don’t feel right doing it, especially not with some things that I know and not with some things that have happened. I don’t think it’s the citizens who should have to bear the brunt of some of this.”
Referring to the city’s legal expenses, Mei said costs had risen because “a lot of people behaved horribly.
“I know how terrible some people might feel about how some things have gone, but a lot of other people feel worse,” he said. “I’m not going to participate in making anyone else feel worse. I’m going to be a no vote on it.”
After further discussion, the council agreed to table the budget and continue reviewing possible reductions before bringing it back for consideration.
Because Rawls missed most of the council’s work sessions due to his job, Lawson said she’d like to hear more about his ideas. Rawls agreed to provide them to fellow council members.
