NOTN- The Juneau Assembly held a special budget listening session last night as the city faces a steep drop in revenue following last fall’s municipal election.
Assembly and staff said voter-approved changes, including a property tax mill rate cap and new sales tax exemptions on essential food and residential utilities. have created a larger-than-expected budget gap.
“As I’m sure most of or all of you know, we’re in a difficult position of having to come up with a balanced budget after significant revenue loss.” Finance Chair Christine Woll said, “People are paying less in taxes, which is a good thing. The flip side is we have less resources available to fund city services.”
Finance staff now project roughly a $14 million reduction in sales tax revenue heading into fiscal year 2027.
The Assembly is searching for $2-4 million in service cuts and potential new revenue.
“No question, there’s reduced revenue, but we’re really trying to be measured in how they approach it, which means you will be hearing from us and having this conversation over the course of two years, and you’ll get very tired of it, but expect us to be in this conversation of, ‘how do we live within our means for a couple of years?’ Because he certainly wants to make sure that it’s done thoughtfully and with lots of engagement.” Said City Manager Katie Koester.
Public testimony at the listening session focused largely on protecting Parks and Recreation services, including the Treadwell Arena, Diamond Park Field House, pools, and the Jensen-Olson Arboretum.
Testifiers told heartwarming stories about their experiences, memories and use of these city facilities emphasizing to the assembly their importance to Juneau life year round but especially during long winters like this one.
“I understand that the city has some tough decisions to make regarding funding, and while fields, playgrounds and a field house may not seem vital parts to our community, I’m here to tell you they are.” Said one testifier, Lexi, “Parks and Rec is vital to the Juneau community because it organizes sports for youth to participate in, without the high price tag of club teams. It also provides facilities that youth can play organized or pick up games. Any large cuts to Parks and Rec will substantially hurt the youth of Juneau, the parents that support them and the adults that still feel like they’re youths on the field.”
Residents argued those facilities are critical to Juneau’s physical and mental health, youth opportunities and community retention, especially through long winters.
“I made the possibly questionable decision to start playing hockey at 59 years of age.” Said testifier Kieth, “Since I started I have found a community that is incredible. What’s important to our community is what’s going to keep young people and families here in Juneau, and I’m afraid that recreation opportunities are underestimated in their value there. It’s hard to quantify. People make decisions about whether they’re going to stay here or not based upon what kind of opportunities there are. There’s a wide range of people that I’ve met there, from all across the community that I would never have met before, spans all generations. And during the dark, wet winter months, it’s always light and dry, well lit. And so, I just think it’s a very important place to maintain and I hope we can keep the full funding for the for the rink.”
Some speakers urged the city to raise or revisit certain tax exemptions, while others called for expanded use of user fees, volunteers, and public‑private partnerships rather than deeper cuts to specific city entities.
“Maintain existing services within your existing revenue stream. I don’t think that you ought to adjust taxes, particularly sales tax.
I do think that reasonable adjustments to fees are acceptable to users, if they enjoy the service that you’re providing, or the community is providing, then they ought to pay for those and they should understand that we’re in tough times.” Said testifier Don.
Assembly members repeatedly warned, that even with strong public support, some services are still likely to be reduced as they work to balance the budget over the next two years.
Budget discussions will continue, with more public input opportunities expected before the city passes next year’s budget.
