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Council cites public safety staffing in budget as reason for tax increase
Summary
City officials said the proposed revenue will fund compensation adjustments and hire nine firefighters, four police officers and three other city employees; finance staff said public safety accounts for just over half of the general fund.
City finance staff told the West Valley City Council that public safety accounts for the largest share of the general fund and that the proposed property tax-rate increase is intended largely to cover staffing and compensation adjustments.
"The proposed tax rate increase would generate approximately $1,907,662 of additional ad valorem tax revenue to be used to pay for additional operational employee compensation costs," Finance Director Jim Welch said during the budget presentation. Welch said the general fund is just over $176 million and that slightly more than 50% of general-fund spending goes toward public safety. The proposed budget includes four new police officers, nine new firefighters and three additional city employees.
During public comment, several residents supported the hires: Ryan Mahoney said he supported the increase "to have the best police and firefighters in the state" and warned that the city could lose trained personnel without competitive pay. Others urged monitoring outcomes and asked staff to provide a one-year follow-up on return on investment for the new positions.
