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Lemoore finance director presents healthier revenue picture; council begins FY27 budget process
Summary
Finance Director Joselyn Valdez told the Lemoore City Council the general fund is projected to come in higher than budgeted for FY26, driven by Measure S and new SB90 claims, and outlined proposed FY27 revenues and enterprise fund challenges including lower water consumption and planned AMI meters.
Joselyn Valdez, Lemoore finance director, told the city council on April 21 that the city's general fund is tracking above the FY26 adopted budget and outlined proposed revenues for FY27.
"So looking at general fund, we budgeted 18.4 million and we are projecting at coming in 21.3," Valdez said, noting the increase stems largely from Measure S receipts and newly captured SB90 reimbursement claims. She said SB90 claims are expected to bring about $416,000 this fiscal year and that planning fees and other permits have contributed roughly $300,000 in added receipts.
Valdez said the city is treating proceeds from capital leases and ESG project drawdowns as accounting inflows rather than "true" revenue, and emphasized enterprise fund pressures. "Water consumption revenue has decreased," she said, noting that AMI (advanced metering infrastructure) meters planned for installation should help recapture lost consumption charges but that those benefits would likely not be fully realized until FY28.
On the broader FY27 forecast, Valdez presented a proposed general fund of about $21.7 million (an increase over the FY26 adopted $18.4 million) and described enterprise fund shifts: lower water revenue, steady refuse and sewer projections pending rate studies, and fleet revenue that mirrors expenditures with a small inflator to address negative balances.
Council members asked for clarifications on fund balances, the city's investment policy and the ESG accounting treatment. Valdez said she would provide a fuller draft budget and additional detail at the next meeting, including historical comparisons and fund-balance breakdowns.
Public commenters praised Measure S for stabilizing services and urged council consideration of restoring event-contractor funding to support downtown events.
The council did not take a final budget vote at the workshop; Valdez said staff will return with a formal draft and supporting charts for subsequent meetings.
