How Midland is run
Who runs Midland, 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 Midland's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Midland
Midland has a council-manager government. Five council members, one from each ward, pass ordinances, set tax rates and adopt the budget. The council appoints the city manager, who runs day-to-day operations and appoints department heads and other city employees, and also appoints the city attorney.
What they are paid
- 3% cost-of-living increase under the employment contract (June 2025)
- Merit increase of 1.5% of base salary (June 2025)
- Merit lump sum of $2,500 (June 2025)
Midland city staff
360 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 52, Fire 47. FY2026-27. Authorized full-time employees in the FY2026-27 budget, up from 330 in FY2020-21. The budget also lists 124 part-time employees. City of Midland · May 18, 2026
The budget shows authorized positions and personnel costs for each department. We found no list of pay by position or employee. Michigan has no statewide pay database. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Midland 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 manager's budget message says the FY2026-27 budget makes significant use of general fund balance and that keeping the targeted minimum fund balance will not be possible. The city's projections, which assume no changes to staffing, services or millage, show the general fund balance falling from $38.4 million at June 30, 2026 to $11.8 million at June 30, 2029. City of Midland · May 18, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $18.6M (2025-06-30). City of Midland · Feb 27, 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$37M · 57%
- Drawn from fund balance$6.8M · 10%
- State personal property tax reimbursement$6M · 9%
- State grants$4.8M · 7%
- Charges for services$4.1M · 6%
- Investment earnings$1.8M · 3%
- Other$4.7M · 7%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Public safety$26.7M · 41%
- Parks and recreation$9.4M · 14%
- General government$9.1M · 14%
- Transfers to other funds$7M · 11%
- Sanitation$6M · 9%
- Public works$5.2M · 8%
- Other$1.9M · 3%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Of each property-tax dollar a Midland homeowner pays, about 38 cents goes to the city. Non-homestead property also pays school operating tax, for 57.0792 mills in all.
38¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Midland
- City of Midland15.1399 · 38%
- Midland County10.273 · 26%
- State Education Tax6 · 15%
- Midland County Educational Service Agency3.1104 · 8%
- Midland Public Schools2.9016 · 7%
- Delta College2.0559 · 5%
- Total (mills)39.4808
2025 tax year rates for a home (homestead) in the city of Midland (Midland County). City of Midland · May 18, 2026
See what a Midland house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Midland is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityMidland Police DepartmentCity of Midland · Feb 27, 2026
- FireThe cityMidland Fire DepartmentCity of Midland · Feb 27, 2026
- Sewer and wastewater treatmentThe cityCity of Midland (water reclamation fund)City of Midland · Feb 27, 2026
- TrashThe cityCity of Midland Public WorksWeekly curbside refuse pickup by city staff; recycling is collected by a contractorCity of Midland · May 18, 2026
- LibraryThe cityGrace A. Dow Memorial Library (city)City of Midland · Feb 27, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of MidlandCity of Midland · Feb 27, 2026
- City streetsThe cityCity of MidlandCity of Midland · Feb 27, 2026
- Senior housingThe cityCity of Midland (Riverside Place and Washington Woods)City of Midland · Feb 27, 2026
- LandfillThe cityCity of Midland Sanitary LandfillCity of Midland · Feb 27, 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 | Bay CityMI | MidlandMI | SaginawMI | Battle CreekMI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 31,868 | 42,806 | 42,863 | 52,021 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $165,000 | Not confirmed | $178,039 | $190,000 |
| Council member pay | $8,000 | Not current (2023) | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $908 | $1,523 | $1,077 | $1,263 |
| Debt per resident | $1,010 | $738 | $890 | $924 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $743 | $2,094 | $3,234 | $2,166 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 9.9 | 8.4 | 9.7 | 10.3 |
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).
What Midland publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe 2026-2027 adopted budget book and line-item budget are posted; the adopting resolution is in the May 18, 2026 minutes. City of Midland
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineMinutes record the 2017 approval and later raises, but the agreement and the salary amount are not in the posted packet or minutes. City of Midland · Aug 28, 2017
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list yeas and nays by name when a vote is split, e.g. a 4-1 zoning vote on Aug. 11, 2025. City of Midland · Aug 11, 2025
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online City of Midland · Oct 10, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe council page states the 2023 compensation commission amounts: $4,600 a year for council members and $7,000 for the mayor. City of Midland · Oct 10, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- The FY2026-27 budget draws $6.8 million from general fund balance, and city projections show the balance at $11.8 million by June 30, 2029. Which services or rates will the council revisit first?
- The two city pension plans owed $89.6 million more than their assets at June 30, 2025, and the MERS plan was 61.44% funded. How long will the city keep paying above the required contributions?
- Unassigned general fund balance was $18.6 million at June 30, 2025. How much of it will remain after the $6.8 million drawn in FY2026-27?
- The council approved manager raises in June 2025 without stating a dollar salary. Will the city post the current salary and employment agreement?
The fiscal year runs July 1 to June 30. The manager introduced the FY2026-27 budget on April 13, 2026; the council held a work session April 20, public hearings April 27 and May 11, and adopted it May 18, 2026. See who is running for council
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