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Alta council adopts state clean-energy program and advances FY2027 budgets, including proposed property-tax increase
Summary
Alta's council voted unanimously to adopt Ordinance 2026-07 to participate in the Community Clean Energy Program (a Rocky Mountain Power/PSC initiative) that initially enrolls customers with an opt-out and an estimated $4/month residential program rate. The council also advanced a tentative FY2027 budget package that includes a proposed $100,000 ad valorem revenue increase, use of cash-on-hand to balance near-term budget gaps, and discussion of an optional 1% transient room tax.
The Alta Town Council voted to adopt Ordinance 2026-07 to enroll the town in Utah's Community Clean Energy Program, a utility-run, Public Service Commission-approved initiative that pools municipal load to develop renewable resources. Town staff explained the program will initially add an estimated $4 per month to residential bills for participating customers, includes a six-month free opt-out window after implementation and offers specific low-income protections funded by a modest per-customer surcharge. Following a roll-call vote the ordinance passed unanimously.
During the same meeting staff and the budget committee presented the town's FY2027 tentative budgets across the general fund, water and sewer enterprise funds, and capital projects. Staff proposed a suite of programmatic changes: a 3% cost-of-living adjustment for town employees, funding for a short overlap to hire a marshal successor, continued contract planning support, and dissolving the town's impact-fee program. To balance the general fund tentatively, staff proposed increasing ad valorem property-tax revenue by $100,000 (presented as a 25% change in the ad-valorem line in the staff presentation) and estimated up to $200,000 in additional revenue if a 1% transient-room tax were adopted.
Council members debated trade-offs: some said placing more of the burden on overnight visitors via a transient-room tax is fair and common in resort communities, while others urged caution about Alta's already high visitor charges and competitive position. Staff warned that part of the FY27 plan relies on drawing down cash reserves and that longer-term capital needs (including a potential large new town building) will require sustainable capital planning. The council moved through several routine budget resolutions by roll call, adopted a schedule for required public hearings under Utah's truth-in-taxation rules, and set a public hearing date for the proposed property-tax increase.
No final long-term capital borrowing or permanent rate actions were approved at the May 13 meeting; council actions were limited to adopting tentative budgets, procedural resolutions, and setting notice/hearing dates required by state statute. Staff flagged that water and sewer enterprise funds include proposed rate increases in the FY27 budget (roughly 9% for water, 10% for sewer) to support operations and planned capital work.
