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City holds public hearing on FY2026 tentative budget; staff proposes new public safety property tax fund
Summary
Midvale staff presented the tentative FY2026 budget at a June 3 public hearing and outlined a proposed new public safety special revenue fund supported by a dedicated public safety property tax; no final budget or tax was adopted at the meeting.
Midvale City held the required public hearing on the city'wide tentative budget for fiscal year 2026 on June 3; city staff presented revenue and expenditure estimates and described a proposed organizational change to put public safety revenues and expenses into a new public safety special revenue fund backed by a new public safety property tax.
Finance staff said the General Fund shows estimated revenues of roughly $27 million for FY2026, a 13.5% decrease from FY2025, largely attributed to one'time use of fund balance and prior capital contributions in FY2025. Sales tax is the largest single General Fund revenue (about $11.3 million) and is conservatively projected to fall 1% from FY2025 based on current collections and economic trends. Property tax revenue in the General Fund is projected near $3.5 million with no change from FY2025 in the tentative figures presented.
Why this matters: staff told the council that public safety costs have been a growing pressure on the General Fund and that placing public safety revenues and expenditures into a dedicated special revenue fund would improve transparency. The proposed new Midvale public safety property tax would be levied by ordinance under Utah Code (as referenced in the packet) and the revenues would be restricted to public safety expenses. Staff estimated the tentative budgeted public safety property tax would generate about $912,112 and would increase the average residential tax bill by about $67 annually under current assessed values and assumptions.
Other highlights: the tentative budget included a 2.2% placeholder for a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) and a 2% merit/market placeholder, changes to sanitation rates (proposed 2% increases), continued water/sewer rate schedule changes tied to a prior 5-year financial sustainability plan, and an ongoing capital program that will be finalized by August for bond timing.
Public process: the presentation was informational and the council opened and closed the required public hearing; there was no vote to adopt the final budget or the proposed public safety tax at the June 3 meeting. Staff said they will return with a final budget adoption and, if needed, a truth-in-taxation process for any property tax changes with the public hearing tentatively scheduled for Aug. 19, 2025. City staff also told the council they will produce outreach materials to explain the proposed new property tax line and the impacts on property tax notices.
Ending: council members asked clarifying questions about timing, notices and the extent to which the temporary reduction in state mitigation funds (homelessness mitigation funding) will affect funding for non-law-enforcement safety projects; staff said reductions would likely constrain non-law-enforcement capital projects funded by the mitigation grant but that law enforcement commitments would continue to be prioritized while staff continue final budget negotiations.
