How Fort Thomas is run
Who runs Fort Thomas, 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 Thomas's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Fort Thomas
Fort Thomas is governed by a mayor and a six-member council. A City Administrative Officer, Matthew Kremer, was appointed by a municipal order the council approved in 2022. The council adopts the annual budget and fixes city employees' pay by ordinance.
What they are paid
Fort Thomas city staff
The city's pay plan lists a salary range for each job. We found no published total staff count; the police department says it has 23 sworn officers. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Fort Thomas 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.
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $15.5M (2025-06-30). The city's own target: The city has no minimum general fund balance target. City of Fort Thomas · Dec 15, 2025
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
- Licenses and permits (including payroll taxes)$9.6M · 42%
- Taxes$7.6M · 33%
- Drawn from general fund reserves$3.6M · 16%
- Current services$864,950 · 4%
- Investment and property income$495,860 · 2%
- Federal and state grants$374,800 · 2%
- Miscellaneous$301,800 · 1%
- Other (fines and penalties)$41,500 · 0%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Police$6.2M · 27%
- Fire$4.3M · 19%
- Parks and greenspace (including $3.2 million of capital)$3.9M · 17%
- Finance department (including $1.4 million of transfers)$2.4M · 10%
- Public works$2.1M · 9%
- Mayor's office$1.2M · 5%
- Other (general services, recreation, property maintenance, garage, paramedic services, street lighting, community center)$2.8M · 12%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Fort Thomas is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityFort Thomas Police Department23 sworn officers.City of Fort Thomas
- FireThe cityFort Thomas Fire DepartmentCity of Fort Thomas
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of Fort Thomas Parks and RecreationCity of Fort Thomas
- MuseumThe cityFort Thomas Museum (city)City of Fort Thomas
- Farmers marketThe cityCity of Fort ThomasCity of Fort Thomas
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 | BereaKY | Fort ThomasKY | DanvilleKY | St MatthewsKY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 16,662 | 17,142 | 17,736 | 17,868 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not current (2022) | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not current (2019) | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $1,571 | $1,338 | $1,530 | $1,673 |
| Debt per resident | $690 | $492 | $3,751 | $17 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $1,272 | $1,120 | $1,555 | $652 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | — | — | — |
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). St Matthews pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.
What Fort Thomas publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineWe found no contract. A 2022 ordinance set the City Administrative Officer's starting salary. City of Fort Thomas · Jun 6, 2022
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineCouncil minutes list by name each member voting aye or no on roll calls. City of Fort Thomas · Jun 15, 2026
- No: Council pay stated in a public documentWe found no ordinance or budget line stating mayor or council pay on the city's ordinances page or in its budget. City of Fort Thomas
- Partly: Employee pay publishedThe pay plan ordinance lists a minimum and maximum salary for each job, not individual pay. City of Fort Thomas · Jun 15, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2026-27 budget plans $22.9 million of general fund spending against $19.3 million of revenue. How long can the city cover a $3.6 million yearly gap from its $15.5 million unassigned reserve?
- The city has no minimum general fund balance target, with $15.5 million unassigned on June 30, 2025. Should the council adopt one?
- Licenses and permits, including payroll taxes, are budgeted at $9.6 million in FY2026-27, half of general fund revenue. How would the budget change if payroll growth slows?
- The city's share of the CERS pension liability was $19.2 million on June 30, 2025, most of it for police and fire. What is the plan to pay it down?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The council held a public hearing on the proposed FY2026-27 general fund budget on May 18, 2026, gave the budget ordinance its first reading June 1, 2026 and adopted it June 15, 2026. See who is running for council
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Every number here was checked by hand against the linked document. Cities publish on different schedules, so years differ between sections; each figure says which year it describes. Spotted something wrong or out of date?
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