Glendale staff warn of multi‑year general fund shortfall; proposals include fund shifts, hiring pause and new revenue options

City finance staff told the Glendale City Council at a May 8 special study session that the city faces a projected $13.5 million general‑fund deficit for fiscal year 2024–25 and a structural imbalance that could exceed $34 million in 2025–26 without mitigation.

The presentation by Acting Finance Director John Tetykalian said the city adjusted its expected general‑fund resources from about $330 million to roughly $323 million and now projects expenditures near $336 million, producing the $13.5 million shortfall. After a package of department reductions and short‑term funding shifts proposed by staff, the city would close the current year with an estimated $4.9 million use of the general‑fund reserve.

Tetykalian told the council the gap reflects both lower revenues and higher costs. "Sales tax has taken a significant hit," he said, citing roughly $5 million in reduced sales‑tax receipts tied to weakness in the auto sector. He also identified an almost $3 million decline in landfill tipping‑fee revenues and smaller losses in utility user tax and charges for services. On the expenditure side he cited about $8.3 million of increases as of March 31, 2025, including $2 million for the first phase of Project 300, overtime and windstorm response costs.

Staff described a set of largely one‑time or timing‑based moves to reduce the near‑term deficit to about $4.9 million: a $3.0 million temporary draw down from the workers' compensation fund because claim projections were lower than anticipated; suspending liability insurance deposits to free about $2.8 million this…