How Fort Myers is run
Who runs Fort Myers, what it costs, and where your money goes
The city manager, council pay, the budget, your property tax bill and who provides each service, from Fort Myers's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Who runs Fort Myers
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The council sets policy, adopts the budget and sets the tax rate.
What they are paid
- $10,000 per elected official for neighborhood improvement projects (FY2026 budget)
- $5,000 per elected official in discretionary grants to nonprofits (FY2026 budget)
Fort Myers city staff
1,106 full-time-equivalent positions, including Public safety (police and fire) 575. FY2025. Budgeted positions, not counting elected officials or the CRA. The FY2026 adopted budget lists 1,139.0. City of Fort Myers · May 31, 2026
Florida has no statewide pay database. The city posts pay ranges by job class (October 2024 pay plans), not pay by person. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Fort Myers in the red?
Cities must pass a balanced budget, so "profit" and "deficit" mean something different here. The useful questions: does the city's everyday money (the general fund) cover its everyday costs, how much does it keep in savings compared with its own target, and how big are its pension and debt bills.
The city's own outlook
The city calls the FY2027 general fund budget hold-the-line, with minimal changes to keep current service levels, and uses about $4.9 million of reserves to balance it. The tax rate rises from 6.5000 to 6.9000 mills. City of Fort Myers · Sep 21, 2026
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $44.4M (2025-09-30). The city's own target: Keep unrestricted general fund balance (committed, assigned and unassigned together) of at least 20% of the year's budgeted spending, including transfers. At Sept. 30, 2025 it was 36.0%. The city meets this target. City of Fort Myers · May 31, 2026
Why we skip the "budgeted deficit": many cities plan to dip into savings, then spend less than planned. The audited result tells you what really happened.
Where the money comes from and goes
The general fund only: the city's everyday money for FY2026-27.
Comes from
- Property taxes$92.9M · 48%
- Licenses, permits and fees (incl. fire assessment)$30.2M · 16%
- State and other governments$24.2M · 13%
- Other taxes (utility, communications, business)$23.7M · 12%
- Miscellaneous (incl. administrative charges)$14M · 7%
- From reserves (fund balance)$4.9M · 3%
- Charges for services$1.6M · 1%
- Other (interest, fines, transfers in)$2.1M · 1%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Public safety (police, fire, dispatch)$114M · 59%
- General government$25M · 13%
- Debt service transfers$19.6M · 10%
- Other transfers out (incl. redevelopment districts)$14.9M · 8%
- Physical environment$12.7M · 7%
- Culture and recreation$6.3M · 3%
- Transportation$1.1M · 1%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a Fort Myers homeowner paid for the 2025 tax year, about 39 cents went to the city. The city's voter-approved parks debt rate was zero that year. For FY2026-27 the city raised its operating rate to 6.9000 mills and added a 0.1170-mill voter-approved debt rate.
39¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Fort Myers
- City of Fort Myers6.5 · 39%
- Lee County3.7623 · 23%
- Lee County schools (state-required)3.071 · 19%
- Lee County schools (local board)2.248 · 14%
- Lee County Library District0.4218 · 3%
- South Florida Water Management DistrictDistrict-wide, Everglades and Okeechobee Basin levies0.2301 · 1%
- Lee County Mosquito Control District0.2116 · 1%
- West Coast Inland Navigation District0.0394 · <1%
- Lee County Hyacinth Control District0.0192 · <1%
- Total (mills)16.5034
2025 tax year (FY2025-26) rates for a home in the city of Fort Myers (Lee County). Lee County Property Appraiser · Oct 13, 2025
See what a Fort Myers home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Fort Myers is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityFort Myers Police DepartmentCity of Fort Myers · May 31, 2026
- FireThe cityFort Myers Fire DepartmentPartly paid by a fire assessment of $239.80 per dwelling unit in FY2027City of Fort Myers · May 31, 2026
- Water and sewerThe cityCity of Fort Myers Public UtilitiesCity of Fort Myers · May 31, 2026
- StormwaterThe cityCity of Fort MyersCity of Fort Myers · May 31, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Fort Myers Parks & RecreationIncludes an ice-skating center and two city golf coursesCity of Fort Myers · May 31, 2026
- Yacht basin, cemetery and parking garagesThe cityCity of Fort MyersCity of Fort Myers · May 31, 2026
Compared with similar cities
The cities in this state closest in population that we cover. Read it for scale, not as a ranking: cities provide different services.
| Per city | SunriseFL | PlantationFL | DeltonaFL | Fort MyersFL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 98,310 | 98,437 | 98,792 | 102,060 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not current (2019) | $225,000 | Not current (2021) |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,901 | $1,615 | $796 | $1,897 |
| Debt per resident | $2,131 | $502 | $1,454 | $4,685 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $2,259 | $845 | $75 | $721 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 12.4 | 9.4 | 4.2 | 10.8 |
Figures as shown in each city's section, divided by its population. Years differ by state, and pension figures are measured differently in each state (each city page says how). Deltona pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Fort Myers publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Audited financial report filed on timeFY2025 report dated May 31, 2026, within the nine months state law allows; posted on the Florida Auditor General site. Florida Auditor General
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe budget page posts the FY2027 adopted budget summary, budget in brief, fund details and the budget resolution. City of Fort Myers
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online City of Fort Myers
- No: Council pay stated in a public documentWe found no readable budget page, ordinance or resolution that states the dollar pay of the mayor or council members. City of Fort Myers
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Fort Myers
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2027 general fund budget uses about $4.9 million of reserves even after the tax rate rose to 6.9000 mills. What would balance it without reserves in later years?
- The police pension plan was 82.16% funded on Sept. 30, 2025, with a $50.4 million shortfall. What is the plan to close it?
- City Manager Marty Lawing retires Dec. 9, 2026. How and when will the council choose his successor?
- Unrestricted general fund reserves were 36.0% of budgeted spending in 2025, above the 20% target. How does the council plan to use the amount above the target?
Help decide what comes next
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