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Provo City Council reviews FY25 budget priorities and narrows candidates for FY26
Summary
City staff and councilors reviewed progress on five FY25 budget priorities, confirmed ongoing work on zoning and sidewalk projects, and began ranking draft priorities to guide FY26 budget development, scheduling a follow-up on Feb. 11.
The Provo City Council on Jan. 7 received an update on progress toward five budget priorities the council adopted for fiscal year 2025 and began a process to narrow priorities for fiscal year 2026.
Justin Harrison, a council staff presenter, told the council the five FY25 priorities were “increasing owner occupancy, active transportation and street safety, exploring and developing parking plans, employee talent retention, and continuing the efficient delivery of city services.” He said staff would use the progress report to “get into the goal setting exercise” for FY26.
Why it matters: the council uses a short list of budget priorities to guide the administration when preparing the draft city budget. Priorities that the council flags early in the year shape department requests, grant-seeking and how staff allocate limited one-time and ongoing funds.
Harrison and department leaders briefed the council on what has been funded or advanced to date. Among the specifics: a zoning update funded from a legacy capital-improvement appropriation, sidewalk and school-pedestrian projects that public works has pursued using a mix of city and outside funds, and the inclusion of merit and market adjustments in the FY25 personnel budget.
Council members discussed refining the next-year list to avoid giving the administration an unwieldy set of directions. “Sometimes we have these meetings, and we feel obligated to make a decision quickly,” Harrison said, adding that the Feb. 11 work session will include time for administration reaction and final ranking.
Councilors agreed on a process: staff will circulate the draft priority list and the administration will return with concrete budget implications and possible multi-year plans for items the council flags as high priority. Harrison said he would compile the council’s edits and return with a narrowed list and explanatory notes for departments. The council scheduled follow-up work-session time in February to finalize FY26 priorities.
The meeting included project-specific briefings that the council asked staff to fold into the FY26 budget conversations, including sidewalk funding and active-transportation projects, the zoning rewrite tied to owner-occupancy goals, parking management in Slate Canyon and Joaquin, airport capital planning, and public-safety staffing plans.
Councilors did not take formal votes on budget allocations during the meeting; several previously adopted appropriations and grant awards were discussed as context for the FY26 priority-setting process.
Looking ahead: staff will provide written notes clarifying the council’s intent for each priority and an itemized list of outstanding departmental requests the council asked to be considered during budget development.
