City of Florence Adopts 2025-2027 Biennial Budget

The Florence City Council voted to adopt the approved 2025-27 City of Florence Budget on Monday, June 2, 2025. The City’s budget for this biennium (July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2027) balanced and totals $77,118,300, and includes levying the City’s permanent tax rate of $2.8610 each fiscal year of the biennium. The Budget goes into effect on July 1, 2025.

City Staff presented the budget message on May 5, 2025, and the City held two Budget Committee meetings on May 12^th and May 14^th. These included public hearings and the chance for community member interaction.

The 2025-27 Biennial Budget was prepared to address the adopted City Council Goals consistent with the adopted 2025-27 Work Plan.

Florence Mayor Rob Ward stated, “I was pleased that both the Budget Committee and the City Council all worked together through the budget process and voted to approve the budget that was adopted.  With this budget our City remains on a solid financial footing.”

In her Budget Message, City Manager Erin Reynolds stated the following:

“You will find that the proposed budget enables the City as a government organization to continue to uphold the goals and the mission of the City — to sustain and improve city services and infrastructure from which our community members can live, work, and play in a quality, viable, and sustainable manner. City staff have proposed a budget that reflects an ongoing commitment to providing valued services for the community with a foundation of fiscal health and stewardship.

The budget document is the single most important policy document of the City. It sets standards and establishes the action, operational, and financial plans for the delivery of City services. It provides a comprehensive overview of all City funds and services and gives residents a better understanding of the City’s operating and fiscal programs. Most importantly, the City’s proposed budget has been prepared pursuant to Oregon Local Budget Law.”

The 2025-27 Biennial Budget totals $77,118,300, comprised of $67,220,500 in spending and $9,897,800 in ending fund balance. The 2025-27 Adopted Biennial Budget, in total, is a 0.35% increase over the 2023-25 adjusted Biennial Budget of $76,849,600.

The Budget includes appropriations as follows: $21,969,700 for the General Fund; $14,543,900 for the Wastewater Fund; $9,171,500 for the Water Fund; $5,633,300 for the Street Fund; $5,146,700 for the Public Works Administration Fund; $3,952,400 for the Stormwater Fund; $3,627,200 for the Debt Service Fund; and $3,052,100 for the Florence Events Center Fund; as well as appropriations for other funds.

“All the analysis and planning represented in this budget is the product of our dedicated City staff, as led by the members of the Management Team, an engaged and involved community, and the City Council’s leadership to develop, responsively refine, and finally approve a continuum of plans and policies that guide City operations and the future of Florence. Each element is essential to our success in delivering high quality services, improving the City’s infrastructure, supporting the quality of life that our residents value, and managing it all within realistic and sound fiscal practices,” Reynolds said.

Public Safety Fee

In addition to adopting the 2025-27 Biennial Budget, the Florence City Council also held a public hearing on the proposed Public Safety Fee that had been included in the budget process. The Florence City Council and the City’s Budget Committee had previously held discussions related to the need to fill the revenue gap related to Public Safety and outlined in the budget document.

• On April 17^th during the City Council Work Session, the City Council provided direction to include a Public Safety Fee in the Proposed Budget after hearing a report on the budget forecasts and revenue gap.
• On May 12^th the Budget Committee Meeting reviewed the Proposed Budget, received information related to the Public Safety Fee, and discussed the Budget and proposed fee in depth.
• May 14^th the Budget Committee Meeting further discussed the proposed fee and voted to approve the Proposed Budget, referring it to the City Council for adoption.

All of the materials and the meeting videos for those meetings are available on the City’s website and linked on the Budget Information landing page for review. Members of the public interested in these past meetings are encouraged to review those discussions for further background, including the presentation from the June 2^nd City Council meeting.

During the last biennium’s Budget Message, City Manager Reynolds foreshadowed a significant and growing gap between the revenues generated through the General Fund and the rising costs of essential services, especially Public Safety. Despite years of strategic cost-saving measures and temporary relief from federal COVID-related funds, the City’s low property tax rate—one of the lowest in Oregon—no longer provides sufficient funding to sustain core services. Public Safety alone is projected to cost $8.3 million during the biennium, exceeding available property tax revenues by over $1.5 million.

To maintain the level of police and emergency services from the City that residents rely on, and to prevent cuts to other vital services such as parks and code enforcement, the City Council provided staff with policy direction to begin the process of creating a Public Safety Fee. This fee, as incorporated into the budget, is to be phased in gradually starting at $5 per month effective July 2025, with a presumed increase to $15 per month in January 2026, and a presumed increase to $18 per month at the beginning of year two of the biennium in July 2026. With a Public Safety Fee, the City can sustain and maintain existing levels of policing and emergency services. The new fee will create a stable, dedicated revenue source for Public Safety in the General Fund to help close the funding gap, while minimizing the immediate financial impact on residents and businesses.

During the June 2^nd meeting, the City Council held a public hearing on Ordinance No. 6, Series 2025, an ordinance creating Florence City Code Title 1, Chapter 18 regarding a Public Safety Fee. This ordinance and proposed City Code incorporated the direction and input from the previous in-depth discussions during the City Council Work Session in April and the two Budget Committee Meetings. The City Council adopted Ordinance No. 6, Series 2025 during the meeting, which established the Public Safety Fee and set the initial rate at $5 per residential unit and $5 per nonresidential unit on developed properties within the incorporated Florence city limits.

All future changes to the fee rate would be made through resolutions adopted by the City Council and rates will be listed on the City’s comprehensive fee schedule, like all other City fees. Billing and collections of the Public Safety Fee will be through the City’s monthly City Services billing and will follow the due dates of those billings. This is how the City processes other City-wide fees for developed properties. Customers will begin seeing the Public Safety Fee on their City Service Bills beginning in August.

City staff will finalize and implement the communications plan related to the Public Safety Fee with the goal of informing customers of the purpose and details of the new fee that will be seen on City Services Bills beginning in August. This is the City’s first new fee since the Street Maintenance Fee in 2012, requiring extra communications. The City Council and staff understand it is difficult to reach every person and business that will be impacted by the new fee through a single communications method, so the City will be working on a variety of communications tools to reach as many people as possible prior to the fee appearing on the August 2025 bills. In the coming weeks, the City will also be developing an informational webpage for the Public Safety Fee that will be linked on the homepage of the City’s website at www.ci.florence.or.us.

How do you find out more information about the budget?

In accordance with Oregon Local Budget Law, all 2025-27 Budget materials are available to the public prior to each meeting. These can be found at https://www.ci.florence.or.us/administrative-services/2025-2027-budget-information.

The City’s 2025-27 Work Plan can be viewed at https://www.ci.florence.or.us/council/city-council-goals-work-plan.

For information on the June 2, 2025, Florence City Council meeting, including the meeting materials, presentation, and recording, visit https://www.ci.florence.or.us/council/city-council-meeting-281.