The Lakeland City Commission held its final budget hearing on Thursday, Sept. 19, where a fiscal year 2025 (FY25) budget of $731,319,859 was passed in a 5-2 vote. That's less than last year's budget of $746.9 million.

Wondering how the budget was calculated? The City of Lakeland opted to maintain the past two years' millage rate — 5.4323 mills — to calculate the FY25 budget. That means residential property owners will pay $5.432 in property taxes for every $1,000 of their homes' value after deductions.

Let's break down what's included in this year's budget.

General Fund

$183,291,370 — This fund covers public safety (Lakeland Police + Fire Departments), parks and recreation, city personnel, and other day-to-day operational costs.

This line item encompasses ~25% of the FY25 budget. It is funded by residential, commercial, and industrial property taxes, as well as dividends paid by Lakeland Electric, surplus funds from the current fiscal year, and fees.

Strategic Plan target areas

These line items cover four strategic target areas decided by City Commissioners:

$26,602,894 — Infrastructure projects, including new sidewalks + multipurpose trails, traffic calming projects, and sewer upgrades
$8,938,941 — Economic development funding for initiatives like Downtown West and the East Main Street district, plus beautification and parks + recreation enhancements
$1,730,893 — Public safety (think: new firefighters and police officer recruitment)
$322,747 — Culture, which includes art infusion and the next phase of the historic district resurvey

Commissioners also budgeted a total of $825,000 for specific initiatives:

$375,000 — Public art projects through the Mayor’s Council on the Arts
$250,000 — Second non-recurring payment to the Ashley Gibson Barnett Museum of Art
$100,000 — Matching grant for a future Police Athletic League (PAL) building
$100,000 — Matching grant for a senior center

Finance fan? Read the full line item + capital improvement plan budgets, and watch the final hearing.