by SC Reporter Emilie Alfino
The Sanibel City Council at its July 21, 2026, meeting set the preliminary operating millage rate ceiling at 2.5 – the same as last year. The number can go down, but it cannot increase.
The rolled-back millage rate – the property tax rate a local government would need to set to collect the exact same amount of tax revenue as the previous year – is 2.3384.
Steve Chaipel, Deputy City Manager and CFO, presented the draft 2027 budget. You can find the full budget online at mysanibel.com.
The budget amount is $187,087,616. The ending balance is $870,000. Mayor Mike Miller asked Chaipel, “Does that ending balance trouble you?”
Chaipel answered, “I’m concerned about it; I’m not troubled yet.”
City Manager Dana Souza added, “It does concern me. We will be making some adjustments to expenditures.”