The Joliet City Council on Tuesday approved a balanced 2026 budget that adds 11 new jobs but will not increase taxes, according to city officials.

The budget includes $695 million in total spending, which is down 2.4% from a year ago.

The city’s two major operating funds for city services will account for $305 million of the budget.

No one from the public showed up to comment on the budget, and there was little discussion among City Council members on Tuesday.

The vote for the budget was 7-2, however, reflecting arguments made at a workshop meeting on Monday for and against the addition of new personnel.

“There’s more to this that I don’t like than I do like,” Councilwoman Jan Quillman said, making the only remark on the budget Tuesday before the vote.

Quillman and Larry Hug were the two votes against the budget.

Both objected to the addition of new personnel, particularly a special events coordinator being added to assist Ann Sylvester, who was hired in July as the city’s first director of cultural affairs and special events at a salary of $150,000.

The salary for a special events coordinator is pegged at $90,000.

The city plans to pay $920,000 in salaries for all 11 new positions being added to the budget.

The new salaries will contribute to increased spending in major operating funds for day-to-day city services.

The budget for those funds is $305 million, compared to $285 million in spending budgeted for 2025. The city projects year-end spending on those services to come in even lower at the end of the year at $276 million.

But the budget includes no new taxes, and city officials say property owners should not see an increase in property taxes paid to the city of Joliet.

The city set a levy to collect $54.5 million in property taxes in 2026, up from $51.9 million in 2025.

City officials, however, said new construction is expected to cover the additional revenue from property taxes.