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Carlsbad library and cultural arts staff preview FY2025‑26 budget process; base funding unchanged
Summary
Senior management analyst Fiona Everett presented a budget preview to the Arts Commission, saying the department expects to submit a base budget with no increase and may request limited supplemental funding for critical or legally mandated needs. Key dates for the citywide budget process were provided.
Senior Management Analyst Fiona Everett gave the Arts Commission a preview of the fiscal year 2025–26 budget process on Feb. 6, outlining timeline milestones and departmental priorities.
Everett said the Cultural Arts and Library Department is preparing to submit a base budget "the same base budget that we have in this current fiscal year," adding that staff may submit supplemental requests only for items deemed critical or legally mandated. "We do need to carefully consider our asks," she said.
Timeline and next steps: Everett said the department will submit its budget to the city finance team the following Friday, meet with the city manager on March 20, and that the city finance department will present a preliminary budget to City Council on May 20. A community budget workshop is scheduled two days later, with a council public hearing on June 17 and budget adoption before the July 1 start of the new fiscal year.
Policy context and constraints: Everett reviewed the City Council’s strategic plan (adopted Oct. 2022) as the department’s guiding document and noted continuing fiscal pressures including slower revenue growth tied to near build-out, inflation-driven cost increases, and ongoing pension and infrastructure needs. She advised the commission that while the department expects no base increases, staff will evaluate critical needs such as utilities and contract escalations and may request targeted supplements.
Staffing and service levels: Everett told commissioners the department is nearly fully staffed for the first time since the COVID‑19 pandemic and that program activity and facility usage are returning to pre‑pandemic levels. Commissioners asked whether hours (including weekend coverage) would change; Everett said current hours will be maintained and no additional staffing for expanded hours is being requested in the budget at this time.
Partnerships: Everett noted the department’s reliance on endowments and nonprofit partners (Carlsbad Library and Arts Foundation, Friends of the Arts, Friends of the Library) to fund programs and pilot projects outside the general fund when applicable.
Ending: Everett said staff will return with more detailed budget materials during the formal budget season and that she expects to brief the commission two more times before the budget is finalized.
