Eugene budget committee hears updated forecast, recommends $10 million PERS side account and one‑time investments to shore reserves

EUGENE — City finance staff presented an updated six‑year general fund forecast on Dec. 3 that reduces projected property tax revenue and shows a structural imbalance requiring roughly $2.2 million per year in ongoing reductions in the next biennium if no other actions are taken.

Senior financial analyst Maurizio Badalico said staff lowered the assumed taxable assessed value growth rate from 3.6% to 3.5% and reduced the assumed property tax collection rate from 95.6% to 95.5%, changes that together shrink projected property tax revenue by about $4,300,000 over the six‑year forecast period. He also cited a drop in taxable building permit values in FY25 and the expiration of certain tax preferences as contributors to weaker near‑term revenue growth.

The forecast shows the city’s biennial reserve target at about 4% of biennial expenditures (roughly $17 million per biennium). Under current assumptions, the updated reserve trajectory trends downward, and staff said a future ongoing reduction strategy of around $2.2 million per year would be required to meet the reserve target in later years.

"While we have a balanced budget this biennium, under today's point‑in‑time assumptions, a future ongoing reduction strategy of $2,200,000 per year starting in the next biennium would…