Leander police and fire spending

Key facts

• Police, 2026-27 plan: $19.7 million (23% of the general fund)¹
• Fire, 2026-27 plan: $18.3 million (22%)¹
• Together: $38.1 million of $84.2 million (45%)¹
• Growth since 2022-23: police and fire up 42%; whole fund up 34%²

The 30-second version

The city’s general fund pays for day-to-day services. In 2026-27, police and fire together get about $38.1 million. That is about 45 cents of every dollar.¹

Since 2022-23, police and fire spending grew about 42%. The whole fund grew about 34%.² Last year, police and fire came in about $1 million under plan, even though the city as a whole spent more than planned.³

Deep dive

Year	Police	Fire	Both	Whole fund
2022-23 (actual)	$14.2M	$12.7M	$26.9M	$62.9M
2023-24 (actual)	$15.5M	$14.3M	$29.8M	$67.7M
2024-25 (actual)	$16.7M	$16.1M	$32.8M	$74.9M
2025-26 (estimate)	$17.8M	$16.8M	$34.5M	$89.8M
2026-27 (plan)	$19.7M	$18.3M	$38.1M	$84.2M

We group divisions the way the budget does. Police includes 911 dispatch and animal services. Fire includes code enforcement and emergency management.¹

New staff in 2026-27: the police side adds four civilian jobs, including a 911 operator and a crime analyst. The city has also applied for federal grants for 4 more officers and 15 more firefighters. Those jobs are not in the count yet. The city’s 25% share is set aside in case the grants come through.⁴

Older debt: a 2018 loan for fire still had $4.71 million owed in 2025.⁵

The other side

• Share-of-budget numbers jump around because a catch-all “non-departmental” line swings from $8.6M to $21.3M a year.² Compare dollars, not shares.

Questions to ask

• Where does the city post police and fire response times?
• When will the city report the final numbers for last year?

Changes to this page

• Nov. 2, 2026: Added questions to ask.
• Nov. 2, 2026: We cut an other-side point that had no source.

What you can do or watch next

• Watch the police and fire lines in next year’s budget, proposed each summer.
• You can ask questions during public comment at any council meeting.
• See city budget fy2027 for the full budget.

For how Leander compares per resident with Cedar Park, Georgetown and Round Rock, see public safety vs peer cities.

What we still don’t know

• Response times and calls per officer. The budget does not give them in a form we can check.
• Whether the federal grants will be awarded.
• How 2025-26 really ended. These are estimates until the audit.

Footnotes

1. City of Leander FY2027 adopted budget, department table and table of contents. Budget. Saved copy. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

2. Same table; our math. ↩ ↩² ↩³

3. Same table; our math: $35.55M planned vs. $34.52M estimated. ↩

4. FY2027 adopted budget, personnel section. ↩

5. Texas Bond Review Board via data.texas.gov, FY2025. ↩