Governments · City

Lynn Haven

City of Lynn Haven: who runs it, what it spends and owes, how its commission votes, and what the auditors found, all from public records.

Data updated Oct 20, 2026

Residents21,7332025 state estimate

Budget$61.9MAdopted Sept 23, 2025 · $2,846 per resident

New budget$54.3MFY2027 · adopted Sept 2026

Property tax rate4.05 mills$405 per $100,000 of taxable value

Debt$31.5M$1,452 per resident · FY2025

Employees219.5full-time equivalent

Who's in charge

Commission-manager; mayor and four commissioners elected at large

Elected

MayorDavid Lowery
CommissionerSam Peebles
CommissionerPat Perno
CommissionerJamie Warrick
CommissionerCorey Langford

Appointed staff

City ManagerChris Lightfoot

Top pay

Mayor and Commissioners (combined)$86,560 FY2025-26 budget

Website · Contact · All officials

Money in, money out

Adopted Sept 23, 2025 budget · general fund $24.4M

Where the money comes from

Intergovernmental (state shared, sales tax, grants)$8.9M

Property taxes$7.3M

Other sources (transfers/fund balance)$2.7M

Other taxes (utility, franchise, etc.)$2.3M

Permits & fees$1.6M

Miscellaneous$891K

Charges for services$526K

Fines & forfeits$53K

What the general fund pays for

Administration & general government (net of $2.71M indirect cost recovery)$6.0M

Fire$5.3M

Police$4.8M

Parks, grounds, sports & Bayou preserve$3.2M

Streets$2.4M

Economic development$1.9M

Code enforcement, building, animal shelter$864K

The commission kept 4.05 mills. It had considered 4.2834 mills before staff made cuts in response to residents' concerns about property taxes. The adopted rate is still above the rolled-back rate of 3.8866. Source

City of Lynn Haven FY2025-26 Final Approved Budget (9-23-25) · Compare every government's budget · Budget explorer

Property tax rate

Mills: dollars per $1,000 of taxable value

Tax year 20204.3

Tax year 20214.1

Tax year 20224.1

Tax year 20234

Tax year 20244.05

Tax year 20254.05

The tick on each bar is the rolled-back rate, the rate that would bring in the same money as the year before. The latest rate is above it, so the city takes in more from existing property than the year before. See your full tax bill

Debt

FY2025 (year ended 2025-09-30)

$31.5M owed — about $1,452 per resident. Governmental bonds $22,103,690 + business-type bonds $1,646,310 (+ $52,570 unamortized premium) + business-type DEP loans $7,747,165. Excludes compensated absences ($664,439) and OPEB. During FY2025 the city paid off the $4,323,130 contractor-financed stormwater note (2.55%, was due 2047).

Kind of debt	Owed
Revenue bonds	$23,750,000
Bond premium	$52,570
Notes and loans	$7,747,165

Audited financial statements · All local debt

What the auditors found

FY2025: 1 finding · FY2024: 1 finding · FY2023: 1 finding

Reconciliation of Account Balances, Audit Adjustments Repeat
Auditors had to correct journal entries to finish year-end balances, especially grant revenues and receivables, which also changed the federal/state awards schedule. Auditor cites turnover of key staff and late Hurricane Michael grant reimbursements, but noted significant improvement over the prior year.

FY2025 audit · All audit findings

How they voted

59 money votes recorded · 26 split (44%)

Most recent split votes

Jul 14, 2026 · 4-1
Hired Dunlap Shipman for legal services at $275,000 a year
Voted no: Jamie Warrick
Jul 14, 2026 · 4-1
Awarded asphalt services bid to Insite Contractors Inc.
Voted no: Judy Tinder
May 12, 2026 · 4-1
Directed staff to bid out James Rogers Park improvements
Voted no: Dave Lowery
Apr 14, 2026 · 4-1
Approved employment agreement for City Manager Chris Lightfoot
Voted no: Judy Tinder

All Lynn Haven votes, by member

Contracts

26 major contracts since October 2022 · $15.4M

Largest

Mott MacDonald · $3.5M Advanced Wastewater Treatment Facility engineering services (plus allowance up to $245,000) (2024-06-21) Source
Roberts and Roberts, Inc. · $1.7M Legislative roadway repairs project (2023-08-04) Source
CBC Construction · $1.1M Mill Bayou bridge utility relocation project (2023-10-24) Source

All Lynn Haven contracts