‘Do the work’: Council member challenges Wu to say what she wants to cut in budget

Wichita City Council members challenged Mayor Lily Wu to propose city budget cuts that match her desire to lower the city’s property tax rate.

Wu — for the third year in a row — said Tuesday that she will not support the city manager’s proposed budget because its spending levels exceed new construction and inflation. But she did not say what should be cut.

The 2027 proposed budget includes $880 million in spending authority — a $39.4 million increase from 2026 and an $111.1 million increase from 2025.

Property-tax revenue would increase by $17.4 million from 2026 to 2027 based on increases in property appraised values. The mill levy would remain around 32.340 — or $371.91 for every $100,000 of property value for a homeowner. That’s slightly higher than the 32.316 mill levy adopted by the City Council last August. That was later adjusted to 32.340 to meet the city’s operations and debt-service costs based on updated property values calculated by the county appraiser.

The council won’t vote on the final budget until Aug. 25. Wu said she won’t vote for it unless there’s a $4.2 million reduction. She voted against increasing the budget from last year’s on Tuesday, a preliminary step in adopting the proposed 2027 budget.

“I will stay consistent in saying that the only increase I would support is one that captures inflation and the value of any new property being added to the tax roll,” Wu said. “The city manager’s proposed budget goes beyond that, and I understand that today’s vote is simply to notify residents of the city’s intent to exceed revenue neutral. However, out of principle, I will be voting no.”

Wu’s objections, without specific recommendations for cuts, were not well received by her council colleagues. Council member Becky Tuttle had a blunt response.

“If there are cuts that are proposed or suggested, instead of just saying let’s cut $4.2 million, (there should be) a detailed outline,” Tuttle said. “Do the work.”

Tuttle suggested the mayor take a more hands-on approach, as she and other council members have in the past.

“When I said that I wanted to make reform to child care, I just didn’t say, ‘I want to make reform to child care, will everybody vote with me?’ I brought together plans.”

Wu said City Manager Dennis Marstall would plan for the cuts if she had the support of three other council members. But she said she can’t direct him to do so without three votes of support from the council.

“This is a weak mayor system,” Wu said.

Council member Dalton Glasscock pushed back, saying he was able to put forth his own ideas for specific cuts in previous budget cycles.

“The city manager doesn’t have to find it out,” Glasscock said. “We just talked about that — this is our budget to approve. Two years ago, I proposed $3 million of cuts, of which $800,000 was unanimous and was able to reduce the mill levy as a result of that.”

Glasscock also said he would likely support Wu’s cuts if she had any specifics.

“I’m asking for specifics,” he said. “What’s the plan?”

Wu deferred to a lack of political will.

“If there is a will of four individuals on this council who would like that, then the city manager would have to go to his staff because, again, this staff belongs to the city manager, not the council members,” Wu said. “We belong to the people of Wichita. That’s what the council needs to be cognizant of. And so I know that it requires four votes, and right now I’m only one.”

She also declined to offer a substitute motion that would lower the city’s projected taxes levied and mill-levy rate to correspond with her proposed cuts after Glasscock asked whether she would.

“I am not setting a motion today,” Wu said. “I already told exactly what I will be doing today, which is staying consistent with the last two years that I’ve been doing this. ... And I’ve shared this with the city manager since the very beginning, so it’s nothing new.”

Other council members said they’d be willing to entertain Wu’s recommended cuts, even if they were unlikely to support them.

“The reality is there’s not a lot of fat to trim, and so I would be interested in having a conversation in public about areas that potentially any of my colleagues would unfortunately have to cut,” council member Maggie Ballard said.

Council member Joseph Shepard said he would talk to Wu privately, if she wanted to, about her potential cuts.

“If there are ways in which, Mayor, you think we can cut, I’m happy to have that conversation privately,” he said. “I don’t think — you know me by now — I won’t say yes because it’s something you bring forth, but I’m open to conversation.”

Tuttle said Wu’s lack of participation in the process beyond voting against the budget is unfair.

“When we have been working on this since January, and it’s July, to come to the last minute — again, for the third time — and say, ‘I can’t do it, but I don’t have any recommendations,’ just doesn’t seem fair to the community who have been giving us their input and telling us what they think is important.”