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Casper City Council asks for more time to review priority-based budgeting tool
Summary
City staff presented a priority-based budgeting worksheet and scoring approach; councilmembers said the package is too large and requested more time, with staff to return at the first April work session and the full budget crosscut due in May.
Casper City Council members on Wednesday reviewed a staff-produced priority-based budgeting worksheet and asked for more time to examine the material before council-level decisions.
The council’s discussion centered on how the worksheet — which staff said feeds into a quadrant-style prioritization and a scoring rubric called the Basic Program Attributes (BPA) — will be used to analyze the fiscal 2026 budget. Carter, the city manager, said the worksheet “is vital information” that will provide a new lens on programs and help staff translate council priorities into the line-item budget that will be presented in May.
Councilmembers described the current packet as large and difficult to digest. Councilmember Amber said she needed more time to review and suggested streamlining the worksheet for clarity and public communication. Several other members, including Matt, Mandy and Michael, also said they had looked at the material and wanted additional time before a deeper discussion.
Jill, a staff member, described the next steps for compiling scores: “When you guys finish with the priorities that you have developed, then from there, the staff will actually look at all of the different programs and there will be a rubric that we will use to evaluate each program against your priorities. And that's how that scoring works.” She also said departments have completed initial scoring and that those pieces will combine to form the quadrant council will see in May.
Council members asked for detail on the scoring variables. Carter and Jill said cost is treated using cost recovery (revenue offsets), that the BPA contains definitions for department staff, and that staff will provide the scoring definitions and the matrix to the council for review. Carter described cost as one of several variables and said staff will not substitute their judgment for council priorities: recommendations in the staff column are intended only to be helpful, not to replace council decision-making.
Rather than acting immediately, the council agreed to review the worksheet and discuss it further at the first April work session. Staff reiterated that the priority-based tool is additive to — not a replacement for — the traditional line-item budgeting process and that the final crosscut and proposed budget will be presented in May.
Council members asked staff to simplify the materials for easier public explanation and to provide the scoring matrix and BPA definitions for departments’ scoring. No formal motions or votes were recorded on the worksheet itself.
