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Scappoose budget committee flags $600,000 annual general-fund shortfall, urges funding strategy
Summary
City Manager Ben Burner told the budget committee that Scappoose's general fund faces an approximate $600,000 annual operating deficit, driven by rising personnel costs and property-tax limits from Oregon ballot measures; the city plans to use grants and consider new revenue tools to avoid drawing down reserves.
City Manager Ben Burner told the Scappoose budget committee on May 12 that the city's proposed fiscal year 2026 budget reflects continuing pressure on regular operations and a widening gap between recurring revenues and expenses. "The general fund is facing an operational deficit of around $600,000," City Manager Ben Burner said during his budget message, noting the city has built a general-fund reserve of $6,121,870.
The shortfall stems from rising personnel and operating costs combined with long-standing limits on property-tax growth under Oregon's Measure 5 and Measure 50, Burner said. Those measures cap property-tax increases in many circumstances, he said, and the effect is that property-tax growth has not kept pace with costs for services such as police and parks.
Why it matters: At current spending levels the…
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