Takeaways
- Wichita’s city budget for 2025 proposes $742 million in spending, a $40 million increase from the current year.
- The city expects to face budget shortfalls beginning in 2026.
- A city survey revealed that residents consider crime prevention, fire services and street repair to be the most important city services.
Wichita faces a looming budget shortfall, forcing the City Council to pick between raising taxes or cutting back services.
“The city is facing challenges,” District 4 Council Member Dalton Glasscock said. “We’re thoughtfully weighing how we can still provide excellent service for our citizens.”
City Manager Robert Layton suggested several cost-cutting measures for the 2025 budget. They include trimming expenses in the city Finance Department, evaluating the need for city-owned vehicles, eliminating long-vacant city positions and reworking benefits by finding new providers or pulling some back.
In addition, the library and public works budgets are losing ground to inflation.