Cupertino adopts FY2025–26 operating and CIP budgets; council preserves block-leader grant and funds multicultural festival

Cupertino City Council adopted the final operating and capital improvement budgets for fiscal year 2025–26 during its June 3 meeting and acted on related special-project funding and work-program items.

Finance staff presented the city’s final recommended budget of approximately $136 million across all funds, explaining that the budget reflects staff adjustments since the proposed document and includes a vacancy-rate assumption for forecasting. The council discussed revenue assumptions, vacancy savings, and the capital-improvement plan; staff said the proposed CIP had not changed since the May study session and that detailed CIP materials were published with the proposed budget online.

After budget presentation and public comment, council members made two specific funding adjustments during the final-adoption vote: they added a $3,000 community grant for the Asian American Parent Association (for a multicultural festival), and they later restored $10,000 for a block-leader neighborhood grant program that had been slated for defunding. Council also approved staff recommendations to defund two other special projects and two city work-program items and directed staff to return unspent funds to the appropriate accounts.

Council members and members of the public debated multiple line items and special projects during the session, including festival fee waivers, sister-city support, grants policy, IT project funding and the city’s vehicle/fleet replacement schedule. Staff said many projects would move from one-time special-project funding into departmental base budgets as the city operationalizes programs.

The budget adoption and the accompanying special-project decisions passed unanimously.