Budget committee reviews FY26 technical changes; proposes 9.9% reserve, funds for animal services, graffiti abatement and River Parks

The Tulsa City Council Budget Committee spent its meeting on technical changes to the proposed fiscal year 2026 budget, discussing a proposed adjustment to the city's operating reserve and a package of targeted additions including animal-services staffing, graffiti abatement, River Parks maintenance and partial restoration of aid for FreedomFest.

The committee reviewed a draft ordinance to adopt the FY26 budget that would lower the city's emergency operating reserve from 10% to 9.9% of estimated general-fund revenues, freeing roughly $334,003.04 (finance staff later summarized the yield as about $344,000) to help pay for newly proposed items. Councilors and staff said the ordinance and the technical-change memo will be incorporated into the formal motion at tonight's council vote; the committee did not act on the ordinance during the meeting.

Why it matters: the proposed reserve shift is intended to preserve broadly the city's contingency while allowing one-time uses for services and staffing the committee prioritized. Committee members discussed tradeoffs between protecting the rainy-day reserve and directing funds toward near-term operational demands and neighborhood projects.

Most important facts - Finance staff (Jared) told the committee that moving the reserve from 10% to 9.9% would restore approximately $334,003.04 to the unassigned general-fund balance; later summary figures in the meeting cited about $344,000 as the working estimate. That money, together with smaller offsets, would cover roughly $582,000 in orange-highlighted budget additions in the technical-change memo. - Animal services: the committee discussed an $85,000 appropriation to fund a part-time veterinarian (described as a priority by the Animal Welfare working group) and longer-term staffing needs tied to a planned new shelter. Councilors said additional positions for the new facility and other animal-services needs would be considered next fiscal year after further planning. - Graffiti abatement: members discussed a proposed second two-person abatement crew (estimated cost about $166,000 for a two‑person team) and use of some funds for murals or artist contracts to reduce repeat tagging. Councilors raised concerns about ongoing costs and whether abatement would be targeted to hot spots (several members cited the IDL corridor and downtown riverfront as high-need areas). - River Parks and FreedomFest: staff proposed adding operating funding for River Parks (including $84,000 for Turkey Mountain maintenance and $30,000 toward FreedomFest). Committee members restored an additional $50,000 for River Parks following discussions with the mayor's team; staff said they expect FreedomFest to proceed and that the added funding is likely sufficient to avoid cancellation, but they did not promise a formal guarantee at the meeting. - Special events fees and revenue: the committee reviewed a proposal to change special-event permit fees and saw a projected reduction of approximately $326,000 in estimated revenue tied to lowering a proposed fee schedule (moving from department estimates toward finance's more conservative projections). Jared explained departments had provided updated collection estimates after the budget baseline was set. - Parking fees and study: staff reported a parking-study is near completion; the budget includes a conservative estimate for a partial-year revenue increase if rates rise (examples discussed included moves from $0.50 to $0.75 or $1.00 per half hour), but councilors cautioned that implementation could be controversial and take longer than the budget calendar. - Fire overtime: committee members discussed a plan from the fire department to reduce overtime through operational directives; staff said the department's goal is to reduce overtime roughly 25% from current levels and to limit year-end over-expenditures, but the committee acknowledged that overtime historically has required supplemental appropriations. - Encampment decommissioning/rapid rehousing: members previewed a resolution to earmark remaining COVID-era relief funds (CRF/ARPA) for encampment decommissioning and rapid rehousing. Staff said private-sector philanthropy has expressed interest in matching or supplementing those one-time efforts; committee discussion framed the appropriation as short-term operational support (hotel rooms, case management, site security) rather than new permanent housing stock.

Discussion and next steps Finance staff said the technical-change memo will be incorporated by reference into the budget ordinance as an exhibit; the committee asked staff to refine the memo language to make legislative intent explicit (for example, labeling what specific additions are intended for each appropriation line). Committee members repeatedly stressed that projected revenue items (FEMA reimbursements, parking and special-event fees) are estimates and that shortfalls would require later budget amendments.

No formal votes were taken during the committee session; the committee said the ordinance and accompanying technical-change memo will be part of the council packet and will be considered at the council meeting later the same day. Staff noted that some items (for example, positions that were previously grant-funded) are bookkeeping corrections that move budgeted salaries back to grants rather than the general fund.

Ending Committee members asked staff to: finalize the technical-change memo for exhibit inclusion in the ordinance, confirm whether FEMA reimbursements (discussed as a possible $12 million inflow) would be allocated to the reserve or to unassigned balance, and obtain a clear statement from River Parks leadership about whether the restored $50,000 will preserve FreedomFest as currently planned. The council's formal vote on the FY26 budget ordinance was scheduled for the council meeting later the same day.