Cottonwood Heights staff present tentative budget with $3.5 million property tax increase

Finance Director Scott Jurgis presented the city’s tentative FY2026‑27 budget on May 5 and told the council the draft "does include a property tax increase of $3,500,000." The tentative budget is a working template the council can modify before final adoption.

Jurgis said prior years’ use of fund balance — roughly $1.7 million in 2024‑25 and an expected near‑$2.0 million drawdown in the current year — is not sustainable, and that a combination of spending cuts and revenue increases was necessary to close the gap. He outlined increased revenues totaling about $1,028,000, noting roughly $410,000 of that is restricted to capital projects such as roads and trails and cannot offset general‑fund operations.

On the revenue side, staff proposed a $3.5 million property tax increase, projected sales‑tax growth of about $250,000 and a new telecom franchise fee expected to raise approximately $150,000. Jurgis estimated the average homeowner (assessed at roughly $819,000 in his example) would see about a $251 annual increase, and a $1 million commercial property would see about $557 annually; he cautioned those numbers will be trued up after the county certifies final rates around June 10.

To reduce expenditures, staff identified about $397,000 in cuts including two FTEs in the culture division, parade/float reductions and lower council travel and training; a $200,000 annual transfer to the stormwater fund was proposed for elimination (shifting cost pressure to that fund). Mandatory or strongly recommended add‑backs — for example, insurance increases, a projected 4.28% fire contract rise (~$209,000), FBI CJIS/BCI IT compliance and an AV/body‑camera package that includes a one‑time component — raised the net deficit again.

Jurgis summarized the tentative general‑fund totals as roughly $32.0 million in revenues and other sources and said the package as presented would leave the city below the preferred 15% fund‑balance target (projected ending fund balance near 13.1%). He noted state law requires a minimum reserve and that the council must adopt the tentative budget at the business meeting; the budget adoption deadline is June 22. Staff plans public hearings on June 2 (with possible continuation to June 16) and a truth‑in‑taxation hearing on Aug. 11 as part of the statutorily required process.

The budget remains editable through the hearing process; Jurgis and council members discussed timing, restricted revenue constraints, transfers between funds and the need for multi‑year planning to avoid large, abrupt budget changes.