It’s closing in on the time when a Philadelphia-based financial management group will provide the City of Williamsport with ideas on how to narrow a projected $3 million to $4.6 million 2026 budget deficit.

Public Financial Management (PFM) said it will bring its experts back to the City Council later this month with cost-saving ideas and concepts that could require action taken by council and the administration.

Overall, personnel costs for the city account for 75% of the budget. The projected increase for that is 2.5% a year. The 2.5% growth in annual personnel costs assumes the city does not add any head count, PFM said.

Salaries and wages are expected to grow by 3.3% per year based on negotiated increases, with overtime and other cash compensation following a similar trend.

Overtime hours projected costs were bumped up for 2026 to post-pandemic three-year average by the group.

Council was told, on paper, the budget is “badly out of balance,” however, the city has enough cash on hand ($7.4 million) to not worry about the lights being turned off, or paychecks not being covered.