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Kuna treasurer previews budget, recommends using full property tax allowance and modest utility increases
Summary
City Treasurer Jared M.P. presented the city’s budget outlook and recommended taking the full 3% property tax allowance and maximum new‑construction levy; staff also proposed modest rate increases for water and sewer and several staffing additions including police promotions.
City Treasurer Jared M.P. presented the Kuna City Council with the city’s fiscal outlook and staff budget recommendations during a budget workshop, outlining assumptions on inflation, revenue and proposed staffing and utility adjustments.
Jared said staff expects to present a tentative budget at the council’s second July meeting and a final budget hearing in August. He recommended the city use the full allowable 3% property‑tax increase plus the maximum allowance for new construction to offset rising costs and continue funding police services. “As such, we suggest an increase in the maximum rate allowed by law to cover inflation and adjusted expenses to capture growth,” Jared said.
Key fiscal context provided by Jared included national and regional indicators used in local forecasting: stock market volatility, a relatively stable but slowing real estate market, and consumer confidence weakness. He cited an estimated inflation assumption of about 2.46% (to be finalized) and noted several local cost pressures: Core & Main software for water reading doubled (from about $17,000 to $34,000), a lockbox provider increased per‑transaction fees (from $0.10 to $0.25), and the city’s insurance carrier (ICRMP) raised rates about 26% citing higher property values and reinsurance market changes.
On personnel and service proposals, the treasurer said staff recommend adding a building inspector position to reduce outsourced inspections, new parks and streetlight staff, and two police sergeants plus one detective. Jared said the police impact fund is continuing to repay an initial general‑fund loan of approximately $1.9 million used to build the police station. He recommended the city continue to cover the employee portion of health insurance (about 0.4 of the benefit cost share in staff modeling) to remain competitive.
Proprietary funds (water, sewer, trash) were recommended for a 3% rate increase to cover higher replacement and software costs; Jared acknowledged that those funds are disproportionately affected by inflation and noted specific cost increases in software and vendor fees. He also noted significant capital work anticipated in fiscal 2026 (Mason Creek line and well construction) that will use latecomer reimbursements and other fund balances.
Council questions focused on the size and timing of cash carryovers, the option of a longer, all‑day departmental budget workshop, and the specifics of capital timelines (notably the council‑chambers project). Jared said he would return with updated figures for the tentative budget and that some projects previously expected to span two fiscal years may shift depending on developer timelines.
The workshop contained no council votes; staff will produce a tentative budget for formal adoption later in the summer.
