PRICHARD, Ala. — Mayor Carletta Davis presented her administration’s proposed Fiscal Year 2026-27 General Fund budget to the Prichard City Council this week, built around three priorities: paying employees more, strengthening public safety and putting the city on firmer long-term footing.
The proposal, now under council review, includes salary increases for public works employees, police officers, firefighters and the city clerk. Davis has framed the raises as a competitiveness issue rather than a gesture — Prichard has struggled to attract and retain qualified staff, and the administration argues that pay is the most direct lever available.
A dramatic change to employee health coverage
Perhaps the most consequential item for city workers is a shift to a new health insurance plan through the Local Government Health Insurance Program.
Under the new plan, the annual deductible is expected to fall from approximately $2,500 to roughly $200. For an employee earning a municipal salary, that is a change measured in real household terms: a single significant medical event under the old plan could consume a substantial share of annual take-home pay.
The administration is also working to establish a retirement option for city employees, including the possibility of a 401(k) plan. Prichard has not historically offered a robust retirement benefit, and adding one would address a longstanding gap in the city’s compensation package.
Public safety in a difficult year
The budget’s public safety emphasis arrives during an extraordinary period for the city. The Mobile County Sheriff’s Office has handled most police calls in Prichard since June, following a federal corruption investigation that led to the arrest of multiple Prichard Police Department officers, including former Chief Walter Knight. Rebuilding the department is a stated goal of the administration, and personnel costs sit at the center of that effort.
What comes next
Davis thanked the Finance Department for its work assembling the proposal and expressed optimism that the administration and City Council can work together to move it forward — language that acknowledges the friction that has at times characterized relations between the mayor’s office and the council.
The council will now review the proposed budget before taking any action. Residents interested in the details can follow the discussion through upcoming council meetings, where budget items are typically taken up in sequence rather than approved as a single package.