Mike Loftin, the city’s Finance Director and Assistant City Manager since 2014, is retiring at the end of September after a remarkable career in municipal finance and public administration.
Loftin has served five cities during his 50-year career, including Houston, Shreveport, Pasadena, League City and Galveston. His career began in 1974 as an intern with Houston’s city controller where over time he earned promotions to the role of Houston’s Assistant Director for Finance, leading the preparation of the Houston City Budget.
He has had experience with every phase of municipal financial management. His most significant contributions come in financial forecasting, planning and monitoring, and his work has supported financial problem solving, particularly infrastructure, finance, and public safety.
Loftin was hired by the City of Galveston in 2014 to serve as the city’s Director of Finance. His work helped the city pass a bond election, mitigate the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and navigate settlement of a major lawsuit that resulted from Hurricane Ike, all while assisting the leadership in strengthening its pension funds and financial reserves.
“Mike not only wrote the book on government finance, he also took the time to teach and share it with others. He is a true professional in every aspect of governmental operations and finance,” City Manager Brian Maxwell said.
Loftin is regarded across the region and state as a municipal budget expert and has developed innovative sales tax models that explain this most volatile of all operating revenue sources for each local area city he has served. In addition to his career with local governments, he also taught the Public Budgeting class to students in the MPA program at the University of Houston from 1988 to 2015. There, he had a hand in training numerous future finance directors, including his successor at the City of Galveston, Csilla Ludanyi.
Deputy City Manager Dan Buckley said, “Mike brought a level of knowledge and professionalism to the City that facilitated monumental improvements in our finance operations. He built an incredible team who will carry on their duties the Loftin way long after his departure. We will miss Mike and wish him well as he begins the next chapter in his life.”
Outside of his career, Loftin is the proud father of two adult children: Matthew and Amanda. He plays the saxophone and is an avid Astros fan. City staff have enjoyed working with him over the years and we wish him all the best in his retirement.