Willows City committee reviews first Measure I receipts, projects modest deficit and staffing requests

Willows City Finance and Measure I Committee members heard a staff presentation on the city’s current finances and early receipts from Measure I — the 1.5% local sales tax voters approved — and took public comment on how to prioritize spending.

Martie Brown, a city finance staff member, told the committee the city projects a starting general fund reserve on July 1, 2025, of just over $1 million, which includes the first quarter of Measure I receipts (April–June) estimated at about $475,000. Brown said total projected general fund revenue for fiscal year 2025–26 is $7.3 million, including an estimated $1.9 million in Measure I receipts for the full year, while expenditures are projected at about $7.4 million, producing a year‑end deficit of roughly $65,000 and an ending fund balance “just under a million dollars.”

The presentation listed items excluded from the forecast: proceeds from three recently approved city property sales; unresolved transit‑occupancy‑tax (TOT) audit recoveries from motels and hotels; the city’s pending cannabis license approvals and their associated tax revenue; and unspecified future…