Ivins council delays final action on fiscal 2025 amended budget and 2026 proposal; schedules public outreach on property tax

The Ivins City Council on June 5 continued consideration of the fiscal year 2025 "estimated complete" budget amendment and the proposed fiscal year 2026 budget, saying staff will return with updated figures before the council takes final action.

City staff opened a public hearing on the 2025 and 2026 budgets and presented highlights: stronger-than-expected sales and use tax receipts in May, higher than anticipated interest earnings, and ambulance fees collected by Santa Clara that exceeded estimates. Those developments reduce the projected 2026 shortfall from roughly $1.02 million to about $615,000, staff said.

City staff recommended delaying final approval of the FY25 amendment until the next meeting because some capital invoices — including anticipated Highway 91 and animal shelter project bills — may arrive and would otherwise require another amendment. The council voted to continue the FY25 amendment to the next meeting.

On the FY26 budget, staff outlined new and updated assumptions: an increase of about $250,000 in property-tax revenue based on the county’s semi-final figures; an additional $113,000 in projected sales-and-use-tax revenue for 2026 after May’s receipts; and roughly $65,000 in building-permit revenue carryover to support next year’s budgets. Staff also proposed five new positions (a city planner, a storm-drain coordinator, an animal-control officer and two parks employees) and listed capital projects including the Fitness Way Park acquisition, animal-shelter remodel, Highway 91 landscaping and Phase 2 infrastructure.

Councilmembers and staff agreed to schedule a public Truth in Taxation meeting at 6:00 p.m. June 19. The session will include a county auditor overview of property assessment and a city presentation on how different levies would affect sample households. Staff said the county’s final numbers and the June disbursement may arrive close to the June 19 meeting and could be incorporated into the discussion.

Councilmembers emphasized clear, plain-language examples for the public (for example, dollar impacts on a $500,000 house rather than only percentage changes). The council voted to continue the FY26 budget discussion to the next meeting so it can consider updated data and public comment before any decision.

Next steps: staff will seek final county/state disbursement numbers, return updated budget amendments and projections, and present the Truth in Taxation outreach session materials June 19.