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Santaquin leaders present tentative budget that includes property tax increase, new fire position and COLA
Summary
City staff presented a tentative budget that would add a full‑time fire position, fund a pickup for the fire department, propose a $136,000 property‑tax increase (estimate), and include a 4.6% cost‑of‑living adjustment plus up to 1.5% merit pay; council discussion focused on tradeoffs and timing; no final vote taken.
Santaquin City staff on Tuesday presented a tentative budget built on an assumed 2.5% growth in homes and services, a proposed $136,000 increase in property tax revenue, and a package of personnel and operating changes including a full‑time fire position and a $60,000 pickup for the fire department.
The budget would add a full‑time fire role and funds half of a new police officer salary from the property‑tax increase, while proposing a 4.6% cost‑of‑living adjustment (COLA) and up to 1.5% in merit pay. “The budget is based on a 2 and a half percent anticipated growth,” Jason, city staff, said during the work session. Shannon, finance staff, told the council the COLA figure reflects attempts to “play catch up” after past years of below‑market raises.
Why it matters: the package changes recurring personnel costs and could raise residents’ bills when county valuations are finalized. Staff estimated the $136,000 tax increase would translate to roughly $2.17 a month on a median home in their current estimate, but cautioned final numbers depend on county valuations released in June. “We will not know what that actual number is until about the first or second week in June,” Jason said.
Most important facts: the draft budget includes a paid, full‑time fire position (described as a captain‑level or supervisory role in staff discussion), a $60,000 pickup (reduced from a prior $75,000 ask after consultation with the fire chief), and an employer HSA contribution that would be reduced by $500 compared with the current fiscal year. Staff also reported a negotiated healthcare cost increase of about 12% (down from an earlier estimate of 15%).
Council questions centered on position scope and continuity. Council member Travis pressed for assurance the new fire position would support departmental continuity and training, not merely increase headcount. Ryan Lind, Fire Chief, participated in budget discussions with staff; Jason and Shannon said they would continue to refine the role and job description. “This position would be 8 hours a day, 5 days a week…this is the whole purpose of this is to have somebody there that could both cover at the station, but also can do a whole bunch of other duties,” Jason said of the proposed post.
Staff described cost containment steps: reducing an HR administrative position from 29 to 22 hours, reallocating existing public‑works labor across enterprise funds (water/sewer/storm) to relieve the general fund, and modest operational cuts in the fire department (about $8,000). Staff said the tentative budget does not rely on drawing from fund balance.
Next steps: staff requested the council continue review and refinement over the next weeks; the item on the agenda is the tentative budget and staff emphasized there is no final action tonight. Jason asked council members to hold some questions until later in the meeting, saying staff would return with additional details. The council did not vote on budget adoption during the work session.
Ending: staff said they would finalize figures after county valuation numbers become available in June and continue to work with department heads to clarify the duties tied to the new position and other line‑item changes before the final budget hearing.
