Edgewood residents won't learn their new property tax rate until at least October. The city council introduced the FY2026/2027 rate ordinance at its Aug. 17 meeting, but the September session is cancelled per city ordinance because it falls on Labor Day, delaying the required second reading.

Ordinance 2026-08-06, which sets the property tax rate for the fiscal year, received its first reading at the 6:30 p.m. meeting at the city building, according to the council's posted agenda. The specific rate has not been made public. A second reading and vote are required before the ordinance takes effect.

Fire staffing returns to the table

Fire Chief Tom Dickman brought the department's shift structure, recruitment and retention back before council as unfinished business, listed for "discussion and possible approval." The item appeared under Unfinished Business, indicating it had been raised at a prior meeting, though it did not appear on the Aug. 3 agenda.

Dickman has pressed the staffing issue throughout 2026. At the March 2 council meeting, he reported five recruits enrolled in the EMT course at St. Elizabeth and one recruit at the Kentucky Fire Academy. That same night, he recognized 13 firefighters for service milestones, including Assistant Chief Chris Amon and firefighter Greg Burk at 35 years each, and recruitment coordinator Todd Wyatt at 30 years.

The department's staffing push has a legislative dimension. Mayor John D. Link thanked state Rep. Stephanie Dietz at the March 2 meeting for advancing HB589, a bill allowing the rehiring of retired firefighters. By April 20, Link told council the bill had been pulled because of County Employees Retirement System complications but would return in the next legislative session. City Administrator Brian Dehner and state Sen. Chris McDaniel also worked on the measure.

An independent audit of FY2024/2025 finances, presented at the May 4 meeting, found no material weaknesses in internal controls and gave Edgewood a clean opinion.

Meeting minutes from Aug. 17 have not yet been published, so the outcome of the fire staffing discussion and any council debate on the tax rate remain unconfirmed.

The next regular Edgewood City Council meeting is expected in October. Residents can check edgewoodky.gov for the confirmed date and agenda.