Salem, Ore. — At a work session last night, the Salem City Council talked about a plan to fund important community services including park operations, more library hours, recreation activities and Center 50+ programs.
The main topic was whether to ask voters to support a property tax levy in May 2025, and if so, what services the levy would cover. The City Council discussed community benefits of each service, and what services could be restored at tax rates between $0.98 and $1.10 per $1,000 of assessed valuation, or about $229 to $257 a year for the average Salem household.
The City Council confirmed its interest in pursuing a livability levy for the May 2025 ballot. They asked staff to come back with more specifics about the rate and services that would be restored. The Council plans to consider the new draft at its February 10, 2025 meeting.
In November 2024, Salem City Council asked staff to think about a local option property tax levy. It was one of the ideas suggested by the 2024 Revenue Task Force.
City staff have worked to reduce the General Fund budget gap:
- A supplemental budget was approved in mid-2024 to cut costs by $4.7 million, followed by more than $2 million in cuts from daily operations in Parks and Recreation, Library, Center 50+ and Youth Development.
- Third-party audits have been done to make sure the city’s funds are used wisely and efficiently.
- The city re-examined the forecasting assumptions, which helped reduce the estimated General Fund shortfall in next year’s budget (Fiscal Year 2026).
- They are also looking into other ways to find money, especially to cover public safety costs. This includes finding payments from state-owned buildings and a possible solid waste fee to help handle encampments in public spaces.
Even with these changes, a funding gap of about $13.8 million remains in the General Fund, and options to fund community services are limited. City Council referral of a five-year levy to fund Salem Parks and Recreation, Library and Center 50+ for the May 2025 ballot must occur before the ballot deadline of February 28, 2025.
A local option levy is a temporary, up to five-year, voter-approved property tax increase used to fund specific services like parks and libraries. Other communities use similar levies to fund schools, public transportation and other local services.
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