Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall unveiled her proposed fiscal year 2027 budget this week, outlining a $498.9 million General Fund spending plan. While the total cost of running the city tops $2 billion, the General Fund is the resident-funded portion (covered by property taxes, sale taxes fees, fines, etc.). In other words: It’s our money, so let’s look at where it’s going.
The Property Tax & Utility Increases
One of the biggest headlines in this year’s proposed budget is the 12.5% property tax increase, which the mayor says would generate $13.5 million to help offset inflation, rising labor costs, and shrinking federal support. For a Salt Lake home valued at $624,000, that’s about $9.87 more per month.
Your monthly utility bill is also expected to climb: For a single-family household, that could mean about $14 for water (for low-water users), $11 for sewer, and $3 for waste and recycling service, $2.60 for street lighting, and $1.75 for stormwater.
If you’re doing the math, with property tax and utility changes, the average household could end up paying about $42 more per month.
Big Pieces of the Pie
The police department (28%) and the fire department (12%) combined make up about 40% of the budget.
- $142 million: Police department (including a full-time drone pilot for the SLCPD’s Real Time Crime Center)
- $59.3 million: Fire department (including staffing, operation, maintenance and the Wildland Firefighting Expansion)
Notable Line Items
- $11.3 million: Parks
- $11 million: Street maintenance (including $1.5 million for ADA sidewalk and crossing upgrades)
- $10 million: Affordable housing
- $800K: YouthCity and family programming restoration after federal cuts
- $400K: Downtown beautification for the 2027 Salt Lake Temple reopening
- $330K: Volunteers of America Homeless Outreach team and Shelter the Homeless
How To Weigh In
The SLC Council has until June 30 to approve a final version of the budget, and residents can share their feedback before then.
📝 Email council.comments@slc.gov.
📞 Leave a voice message at (801) 535-7654.
🏙️ Attend a public hearing on Tuesday, May 19 or Tuesday, June 2 at 7 p.m.
Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly identified the purpose of the $400K line item. It will actually be used for general downtown beautification during the 2027 temple reopening. A city spokesperson said the beehive lamppost proposal is no longer moving forward.
