March 25, 2026 – Hartford, Wi — Frustration over finances, transparency, and future planning took center stage as Hartford city leaders debated budget challenges and the possibility of a 2026 referendum during Tuesday night’s Common Council meeting.
What was initially described on the posted agenda as “Discussion and Consideration” was later introduced at the meeting as “information only” and the council was told at the meeting no vote would be taken regarding a proposal to exceed the levy via an advisory referendum.
Some members of the council, including alderman Joe Kohler, wondered how the council thought they were voting tonight (Tuesday) and then told it was only an information session.
The executive summary in the council packet also appeared to indicate there would be a vote on Tuesday night.
As the meeting continued, and city administrator Steve Volkert laid out the dire financial situation facing the city of Hartford, alderman Kohler sharply criticized the city’s auditing process, saying warning signs should have been caught earlier.
“I call BS on it,” Kohler said. “These numbers should have been seen a long time ago.”
Kohler questioned how the city’s financial outlook could appear stable in past reviews only to later reveal significant issues.
“We’re relying on the truth that you told us every time it’s happening, and not when all of a sudden… it’s all melted,” he said.
The alderman suggested the city consider replacing its auditor.
“As a council member, I would seriously consider our auditor to be switched out with somebody brand new that can look at our books and be honest with us,” he said.
Alderman Chad Waldvogel drew on his experience in public accounting, and cautioned against placing too much blame on the audit itself.
“Our engagement and the scope of that audit was to review 2024,” he said. “We don’t necessarily engage them… to do a forecast or a future presentation.”
Waldvogel added the audit may have been accurate for the year reviewed.
“It very well could be that, in their opinion, looking at 2024, things were sound,” he said.
However, some of the graphics like health insurance fund balance, showed a strong decline, dating back to 2020.
City officials also addressed questions about emergency medical service finances, including a one-time $332,000 figure tied to closing out an EMS account.
Officials said that type of number is not expected to repeat. Capital expenses also contribute to fluctuations, including ambulance purchases and refurbishments.
A new ambulance, officials noted, can cost around $550,000.
City Administrator Steve Volkert outlined broader concerns, describing what he called a looming “financial cliff.”
Hartford is facing:
- A projected budget shortfall of roughly $1.2 million
- Minimal levy growth tied to low new construction
- Rising operational costs
- Health insurance increases of 15% to 24%
- Declining non-tax revenues and PILOT payments (Pilot payments, payment in lieu of taxes)
“We are basically having to pay about a half a million dollars annually… just to balance the budget and stay under levy limits,” Volkert said, referring to the city’s health insurance fund.
Volkert emphasized a referendum is one potential path forward.
“Wisconsin municipalities often turn to referendum because by state law… to increase your levy… you have to go to referendum,” he said.
If pursued, the referendum would likely appear on the August 2026 ballot.
But several council members expressed hesitation.
“We better find something better than a referendum to go to,” said alderman Jeff Turchi.
Council members repeatedly returned to the idea that the issue boils down to basic math.
“You need to have a certain amount of income… to pay for a certain amount of expenses,” alderman Justin Webb said. “So either you have to increase your non-tax revenue or you need to decrease your expenses.”
Some pushed for a detailed list of potential cuts before asking voters for more money.
“I’d like to see… what proposed cuts by staff would be if we didn’t go to a referendum,” said Turchi.
Alderman Kohler raised the possibility of outsourcing EMS services, citing other communities as examples.
“What would they do to come in here and run a 24-hour EMS service?” he asked.
Plans for a new fire station also drew scrutiny, with concerns about cost, staffing, and long-term sustainability.
“We’re spending money… creating a bigger hole in the future,” said Kohler, adding some firefighters have questioned the need for expansion.
“The majority of the people… are asking us, why are we building a fire station that we can’t manage?”
City staff will now work to refine financial options, including:
- Potential service cuts
- Revenue increases
- Outsourcing possibilities
- Referendum scenarios
Council members said they want a clearer “menu of options” before making any decision.
A decision on whether to pursue a referendum must be made by late May in order to meet deadlines for the August ballot.
On a side note:
-Alderwoman Tina Savage questioned the impact non-revenue generating TID districts were having on the debt?
-Aldermen were disappointed no one from the public attended the meeting, even though they had plenty of complaints when their taxes increased by $400 to $500. “That wasn’t even the city that did that. It was the school district,” said Kohler.
-Aldermen argued about having a referendum on the ballot in August, which they predicted would have low voter turnout because it was summer and people were on vacation.
-Some other funding suggestions from the city administrator included a wheel tax, garbage fee, and park fee were used as examples.
March 24, 2026 – Hartford, Wi – The Hartford Common Council will take up a possible levy-limit override and referendum during its 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 24 meeting, as city officials grapple with what Mayor Dennis Regan described as a “perfect storm” of rising costs and limited revenue growth.
Regan said the issue did not arise from a single unexpected expense, but rather from mounting financial pressures converging at once.
“So it was more a combination of health insurance and EMS services,” said Regan. “Just the additional costs of both of those things really make up the bulk of it.”
Compounding the problem, the city saw unusually low growth in its tax base.
“Basically it was the combination of the lowest increase in… new properties being added. I mean, we had the lowest I think we’ve had in 20 years or something. So we weren’t able to increase our tax base at all,” said Regan.
Despite visible development activity, Regan explained the timing of when new construction impacts the tax roll is key.
“All the new ones are coming online, but they’re not here yet,” he said. “We were at a spot where hardly any new ones came on last year… and next year we’ll be okay… but like I said, unfortunately, that wasn’t the case for this one.”
The city has also utilized tools like impact fees, though those revenues are tied to completed development.
Facing the shortfall, Regan said the city has examined internal cuts and alternatives, including grants, but options are limited.
“Basically we’re looking at every department and saying, where can we save or what can we do to get to where we need to be?” he said. “And if we don’t go to referendum, basically it’s cutting staff… because that’s really the only place you can make that up. And we’re trying to avoid that.”
City staff continue to pursue outside funding where possible. Regan said the problem is, grants are usually “specific to a project.”
Regan emphasized the city has already been constrained by state levy limits, noting last year’s minimal increase.
“What would be really nice is if we didn’t have our hands tied by the state and we could just raise the levy to what we needed it to be. But unfortunately we have to… stay within where we are.”
If approved, the referendum would likely seek a permanent adjustment to the levy to stabilize finances.
“Usually it’s a permanent thing,” Regan said. “So this is to make up the deficit and then get it at the new rates… the first thing is obviously to bridge the gap.”
He added, future growth could help normalize the tax rate.
“With like new properties coming online… we would get the mill rate back to… where we would expect it to be,” he said, while acknowledging uncertainty tied to rising service costs.
“We’re expecting growth to have some positive effect… and then not have the negative effect of needing more EMS personnel or… health insurance rates that… skyrocketed.”
As for timing, Regan said the city is aiming to act quickly rather than wait for a higher-turnout election.
“Our main thing is we saw a budget problem we needed to deal with,” he said. “We were actually hoping to get it on the spring election. So we’re just trying to get it onto the next election in August so… we can deal with it.”
Tuesday’s agenda item is expected to be informational, outlining the likely path forward.
“I’m pretty sure this is just an informative thing; this is most likely the direction we’re gonna have to go unless something else comes up,” Regan said.
While some council members have suggested they were unaware of the depth of the issue, Regan pushed back on that notion.
“I find that a little hard to believe because… we’ve been… telling the council about budget stuff, at least for the last three months,” he said. “That referendum might be a little bit newer because we were hoping we wouldn’t have to do that.”
Click HERE for a list of council members and their contact information.
Public feedback so far has been minimal.
Even so, he acknowledged the broader strain on taxpayers, particularly following recent increases from other taxing bodies.
“I wish I was more comfortable with the situation,” Regan said. “But unfortunately this is what we have to deal with.”
Tonight’s meeting at 7 p.m. is in the council chambers at Hartford City Hall. The meeting is free and open to the public.
On a side note:
-The Hartford common council normally allows citizen comments at the start of the meeting. According to the agenda, appearance/citizen comments is the sixth item on tonight’s agenda where residents are allowed to speak. Normally there is about a 3-minute time limit.
-Responses from aldermen regarding the agenda item on possibly exceeding the tax levy ranged from “aware of the overruns” to “I’m going to learn a lot at this meeting” and “You’ll hear it when I hear it.”
Below is an initial article on the topic published Monday, March 23, 2026.
March 23, 2026 – Hartford, Wi – The Hartford Common Council meets Tuesday, March 24, 2026, and it will be discussing possibly placing a referendum on the August 2026 ballot for taxpayers to vote to exceed the levy limit. No amount of increase is listed on the agenda. Also not listed is whether this is a one year increase to exceed the levy or a permanent increase.
According to the agenda, “Since August of 2025, we have discussed the financial issues facing the City with operational cost outpacing non-tax revenues and the inability of the City to increase taxes to fill this gap. At that time, we discussed temporarily filling the $680K 2026 budget gap with pent up fund balancе from insurance. We knew at that time, this was merely a temporary solution to get us into 2026. Now, we need to address the bigger issue facing the City as to how to permanently fix this issue moving forward by resetting our levy through the means of a referendum request to exceed the state mandated limit.”
In 2025 the Hartford common council voted to raise taxes by about a penny. Neighbors in the community felt a bit more of a sting from the Hartford Union High School, the Joint 1 School District, and Moraine Park Technical College. One homeowner said his taxes went up an unexpected $400.
Click HERE for a list of council members and their contact information.
The full agenda item is below.
Hartford levy referendum 3-2026Click arrow in lower left corner to advance the page. There are 3 pages.
Tuesday’s meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the council chambers at Hartford City Hall. The meeting is free and open to the public.
This is a working story and more information will be posted when details are available.
