Highland Council approves Lone Peak public safety wage increase, adopts midyear budget amendments

Highland City Council on Tuesday approved a midyear pay adjustment for Lone Peak Public Safety and adopted a set of fiscal year 2024–25 budget amendments that officials said are needed to reflect year‑to‑date revenue and expense changes.

The council voted 5–0 to affirm the Lone Peak Board’s approved wage increase for firefighters, a change staff said will increase Highland’s allocation by roughly $66,000 for the remainder of the current fiscal year. Council members then adopted a broader resolution amending the city’s midyear budget, covering multiple funds and line items, also by a 5–0 vote.

City staff and Lone Peak leaders said the wage adjustment is intended to keep the district competitive with neighboring departments, improve retention and address rising call volume and the greater fire‑risk profile in Highland and Alpine. Chief Patton summarized factors that informed the Lone Peak Board’s recommendation: market wage comparisons, rising call volume and Highland’s wildland‑urban interface risk and the size of newer homes in the district. "We're trying to stay competitive in the market," Patton told the council.

Staff estimated Highland’s net revenue position after the changes would be about $30,000 for the current fiscal year and said the midyear wage increase would establish a new baseline the next fiscal year when the full annual assessment is calculated. Aaron, the city finance staffer presenting the midyear amendments, said the $66,000 was the incremental Highland share for the remainder of the fiscal year and that the full annualized impact will be larger in the next budget cycle. He also told the council that the city would use ongoing revenues rather than one‑time dollars to pay the change.

Council members pressed staff for additional data before future adjustments. Council member Smith said repeated midyear raises to public safety were a growing concern and asked staff to convene a council discussion on long‑term funding options, including whether the public safety fee should be adjusted or the costs covered through the general fund. "At some point we're going to run out of money," Smith said. He said he supported the current motion but asked for a long‑term funding plan.

Other members echoed the need for a strategy. Council member Courtney said the city should budget for a midyear contingency rather than repeatedly returning for substantial midyear adjustments. Several council members also asked staff to provide detailed comparative wage data and historical totals showing how much public safety wages have changed since 2021.

Fire district staffing levels and response capability drew significant attention. Council members and the chief reviewed staffing per station and call volume trends. Chief Patton said Lone Peak currently runs an average of four personnel at some stations and three at others and that the district has pursued multi‑year increases to close a recruitment and retention gap. "If we're running short out of a firehouse, what they can do on that incident is drastically altered," Patton said, citing both firefighter safety and response effectiveness in large homes and wildland‑urban interface incidents.

Council members asked for additional information about calls per station, staffing comparisons with peer agencies and response‑time data. Mayor Pro Tem Bridal Bills and staff agreed to return to the council with the requested call‑volume and staffing data for a spring budget discussion.

The midyear budget amendments approved by the council made multiple revenue and expenditure adjustments across funds. Highlights presented by Aaron included a $110,000 upward revision to sales tax receipts to reflect collections through December, a proposed increase in fines revenue, and reallocations across several capital and operating funds (parks, library, cemetery, utilities). Staff said some items reflected timing differences from last year’s audit or previously approved projects that were not fully spent in fiscal year 2024. The motion adopting the amendments directed staff to remove the Lone Peak line item from the amendment exhibit because the council had already acted on that item earlier in the meeting.

Votes at a glance - Motion: Approve Lone Peak Public Safety wage increase (resolution adjusting Highland City FY2024–25 budget allocation to Lone Peak Public Safety). Mover/second: not specified in record. Vote: 5–0 (approved). - Motion: Adopt resolution amending the Highland City FY2024–25 budget as presented by staff (midyear amendments, with Lone Peak item removed). Mover/second: not specified in record. Vote: 5–0 (approved).

The council requested follow‑up reporting to inform longer‑term budgeting: a staff return with wage‑comparison tables from independent sources, total historical wage increases to the public safety budget since fiscal year 2021, calls‑per‑station comparisons, and an assessment of potential funding approaches (public safety fee, property tax, general fund allocations).