Sammamish opens mid-biennium budget hearing, council directs $200,000 for resident food support and opens property-tax hearing

The Sammamish City Council opened public hearings Nov. 5 on mid-biennium amendments to the 2025-26 budget and on the 2026 property tax levy. Vicky Carlson, finance director, presented the mid-biennium package and described the difference between amendments (net changes to fund totals) and adjustments (no net change).

Carlson called out several items in the general fund and other funds: a beginning fund-balance truing-down of $96,000; an affordable-housing addition of $1,100,000 that is both revenue and expenditure (net zero); an insurance reimbursement that produces a net $5,000 increase in expenditures; and a $60,000 cost increase for Fourth of July fireworks that will be absorbed by savings elsewhere. Carlson said total revenue increases were "just shy of 11,681" (as presented) and that the budgeted drawdown of fund balance had decreased from about $14,300,000 at adoption to about $3,800,000 with these mid-biennium adjustments. She also identified an increase in surface-water grant revenue of over $3,000,000 and a related expenditure increase of $1,700,000.

During the hearing a councilmember requested council agreement to set aside $200,000 to help residents who are missing SNAP benefits; the council gave direction that staff should set aside the funds in the human services fund and fund it from existing fund balance. Staff indicated the money would be included in the mid-biennium amendment ordinance when it returns for adoption.

Council also opened the capital improvement plan public hearing but deferred a formal presentation until next week to allow time for review of a lengthy document. During online public comment, Mary Wictor (Tamarack) asked for clearer information about the George Davis Creek stormwater project (components, timing and impacts). She said she had seen estimates "as big as 14,000,000" and requested that the city provide project breakdowns and expected road impacts for residents.

Deputy Finance Director Christian Nenien presented the property tax levy basics. He said the state caps the dollar increase in the city levy at 1% for 2026, equal to $286,979 for Sammamish as calculated by the King County assessor. Nenien said Sammamish assessed valuation increased 10.69% (from $32,110,000,000 to $35,540,000,000). Using the 2025 median home value reported by the assessor ($1,426,000) as an example, Nenien estimated the city portion for that example home would rise from $1,581 in 2025 to $1,597 in 2026 (an increase of about $15.15 annually in the example). The council left the property tax hearing open until Nov. 18; the city must submit its property tax ordinance to King County by Dec. 1.

No final budget ordinance vote occurred on Nov. 5; the hearings were left open for final action later in November.