Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Fargo finance staff previews 2026 budget process, flags public safety pay plan and sales-tax as central issues
Summary
City staff presented a preliminary 2024 year-end overview and an accelerated calendar for the 2026 budget, telling the commission that a public safety compensation plan and a proposed public-safety sales tax will be central to next year’s budget decisions.
Susan Thompson, a city staff member, told the Fargo City Commission that preliminary, unaudited year-end results for 2024 show revenues ahead of expenses and that staff will begin the 2026 budget process earlier than in prior years.
Thompson said year-to-date figures through the January accounting period showed revenues exceeding expenses by about $1.1 million and that, after outstanding state payments and pending grant awards settle, she currently projects a year-end surplus of about $340,000. She cautioned the numbers are preliminary and the audit begins in March with preliminary audit information expected in June.
Why it matters: Thompson said the commission must consider a public-safety compensation plan, now under development, and a proposed public-safety sales tax when balancing revenue and expense choices for 2026. The commission’s…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
