Riverton opens a Nov. 17 hearing on this year's budget amendments, and the notice carries no figures

RIVERTON — The Riverton City Council will hold a public hearing on Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 12830 South Redwood Road, on proposed amendments to the city's 2026-2027 fiscal year budget 1. The notice filed with the Utah Public Notice Website is headed "NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING - 2026-2027 FISCAL YEAR BUDGET AMENDMENT," and it states that the hearing's purpose is "to receive public comment regarding proposed amendments to the 2026-2027 Fiscal Year Budget" and that "all interested persons shall be given the opportunity to be heard" 1. The single file attached to the posting, cc budget amendment_11.17.26.pdf, carries that paragraph and ends there 1. It holds no draft amendment, no fund, no line item and no dollar figure, so the amounts the council will consider on Nov. 17 are not in the notice.

The city treats the hearing as a required step rather than a courtesy. Its adopted budget for the year states: "Any adjustments to the adopted approved budget must go through a formal budget amendment process, which includes a public hearing and approval by the City Council" 2.

The budget the hearing amends was adopted June 2, 2026 2. In the mayor's letter, city-wide expenditures are budgeted at $70.6 million against $71.1 million in the prior year's adopted budget, and revenues at $65.5 million against $61.9 million 2. Sales tax, the general fund's largest source, is projected at $13.3 million, from $13.2 million 2. The same letter states that the adopted rate structure "includes rate increases to both culinary and secondary water fees," and that the budget "does not include a property tax increase for either the Riverton Law Enforcement Service Area or the Riverton Fire Service Area" 2.

A large share of the year is financed from balances. The revenue summary counts $65,528,424 in revenue, $13,946,301 in interfund transfers and $6,716,601 drawn from fund balances, for $86,191,326 budgeted across all funds 2. The general fund budgets $21,085,648 in total revenue, $773,548 of it from its own balance, and ends the year at a projected balance of $4,241,356 2. The Class C Roads fund, the gas-tax account that pays for city streets, is budgeted at $4,160,485 against $3,839,063 in revenue, draws $321,422 from a $2,664,161 opening balance, and ends the year at $2,342,739 2. Its capital outlay for projects is $269,000; the fiscal 2026 adopted budget carried $1,320,000 for the same line 2.

The council amended last year's budget twice, and its final amended budget for fiscal 2026 sets both rounds side by side against the budget as approved: a column headed "approved Dec. 2 adjustment" and a column headed "June 16 final budget adjustment" 3. The Dec. 2 round added $2,743,000 to grant expenditures, $2,084,200 to general capital projects, $1,488,351 to stormwater capital projects, $520,000 to Class C Roads and $420,000 to First Class Road projects 3. The June round added $410,275 to police operations, $155,000 to stormwater capital projects and $185,000 to the general fund, the last annotated in the document to better-than-anticipated interest earnings 3.

Two general-fund lines in the June round are annotated as litigation costs: a $25,000 reduction to one professional and technical account and a $90,000 increase to another, with references in the document to litigation and to redevelopment agency legal questions 3. On Class C Roads, the Dec. 2 adjustment raised the fund's total from $4,812,800 to $5,332,800 3; the figure adopted for the same fund this year is $4,160,485 2.

The notice directs requests for help taking part in the hearing to the Recorder's Office at 801-208-3128, with at least 24 hours' advance notice 1.

The Nov. 17 meeting appears on the council's schedule as a 5 p.m. work session followed by the 7 p.m. meeting 4. That schedule gives Dec. 1, Dec. 15 and Jan. 5, 2027 as the following meetings 4. The notice schedules public comment only; approval by the council is the step the city's budget document describes as following the hearing 1 2.