San Ramon council reviews FY26 revenue projections, Measure N uses and reserve policy

The San Ramon City Council heard an overview of fiscal year 2026 revenue projections, transfers in and the city’s reserve policy at a workshop on April 15, 2025. City finance staff told the council the general fund is projected to collect $80,300,000 in revenue for FY26 and previewed next week’s workshop on expenditures, capital projects and Measure N.

Jennifer, city finance staff, summarized a five‑year deficit trend and the city’s response, saying, “This chart shows the last 5 fiscal years and the amount of deficit.” City leaders emphasized that prior budgets relied on one‑time sources to cover ongoing expenses and said the council must present a balanced budget by June 30 to meet state requirements. “That is a state requirement that we balance the budget by June 30,” the mayor said during a clarification; Jennifer added, “We can't actually approve a budget with a deficit, so there has to be some mechanism for balancing it.”

The presentation and council discussion focused on three revenue themes: the composition of ongoing revenues, projected transfers into the general fund for FY26, and Measure N’s role as a time‑limited revenue source. Staff listed the three largest ongoing revenue categories as property tax ($26,000,000), sales and use tax ($13,000,000) and charges for services ($7,000,000). Measure N, a 10‑year transactions and use tax the council will track separately, is projected at $14,900,000 but was described by staff as not part of the city’s ongoing revenue base.

Staff explained several technical points for the council: property taxes are assessed by the county as of Jan. 1 and limited by Proposition 13; San Ramon participates in Contra Costa County’s Teeter plan, which advances assessed property tax revenues to cities and leaves delinquency collection to the county; and the city’s current sales tax rate is 9.75%, of which the city receives 2 percent of the base. Staff also noted that sales tax and Measure N differ in how they are applied: sales tax is origin‑based while Measure N (a transactions and use tax) is destination‑based.

Projected transfers into the general fund for FY26 include an allocation of capital improvement fund interest (about $100,000), administrative overhead charged to assessment districts and special revenue funds (about $1,660,000), and reimbursement from pension obligation debt service funds (about $3,480,000). Staff acknowledged a small legacy transfer from the village center of $3,971 that is under review.

Council members asked for more detail on several line items. Jennifer said franchise fees and utility franchise revenues are included on the revenue chart (about $6,200,000). She said rental income from city facilities and fields comprises the bulk of the “other/miscellaneous” category (roughly $3,000,000 of the line). Intergovernmental revenues, which include federal and state grants, were noted at about $2,300,000; staff said they would provide specifics after the workshop.

Council members and staff also discussed non‑revenue items referenced in the presentation: the reserve policy target (36% of a defined base), fund balance timing (the city began FY25 with $27.3 million per the ACFR), and a multi‑year deficit total staff presented as $46,700,000 over five years. Jennifer said the finance department will work to finalize datasets earlier in the audit/budget calendar—audits and midyear reports will be completed on a schedule intended to improve accuracy and reduce the need to layer overlapping datasets.

Council and staff discussed federal earmarks the city received for infrastructure: staff said the city has two $2,000,000 allocations (mentioned as coming from congressional offices) and that Caltrans is the administrative partner for invoices and reimbursement for at least one project (bridge design). Staff said a fiber‑optic master plan is in place and that some conduit exists, but that not all fiber cable has been installed and that leasing excess capacity is a potential future option once more network is installed.

No formal votes or motions were taken at the workshop. Staff will return with a second workshop covering FY26 projected expenditures, transfers out, the capital improvement program and a more detailed presentation on Measure N. The council scheduled the next workshop for the following Wednesday at 7 p.m. and had no public commenters for the April 15 session.