Regarding our Fiscal Year 2027 Truth-in-Taxation and Interim Budgets
By Don Hickman - 28 August 2026
On Tuesday, August 18 the City Council voted 3-2 to approve the Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27, July 2026 – June 2027) “Truth-in-Taxation” Budget and continue the appeal at the Utah Supreme Court seeking the authority to proceed. This budget would raise the local property tax rate from 0.000156 (Weber County’s Unincorporated County tax) to the first Ogden Valley local property tax at a rate of 0.000953 and fully fund essential government services.
Find the Truth-in-Taxation and Interim Budgets as well as the Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Book at http://ogdenvalley.gov/finances/
If the Supreme Court rules in our favor, and the Tax Commission approves our actions, the Truth-in-Taxation Budget would replace the FY27 Interim Budget, adopted on May 5, 2026, that we are currently operating against.
Instead of a property tax increase, the Interim Budget relies on the Municipal Energy Tax and a future Transportation Utility Fee to supplement sales taxes, State B and C Road taxes, and other fees to pay for minimal services. Under the Interim Budget, among other reductions, no major roads maintenance (new asphalt or chip sealing) will be done in summer 2026, critical engineering work will be delayed to the future, planning and code enforcement are reduced, and not all necessary staff will be hired.
The Truth-in-Taxation budget relies on property taxes to supplement sales taxes, State B and C Road taxes, and fees and therefore no Transportation Utility Fee would be necessary, and the Municipal Energy Tax would be rescinded.
City Council first discussed the Truth-in-Taxation Budget on April 28, 2026. Four months were available to study the issues and provide viable alternatives. It’s one thing to say No to doing something, and it is much harder to identify and argue for realistic, practical solutions (such as specific cuts to essential services and/or specific reductions in property tax rates) to the hard problems we face – none were presented at City Council on August 18th.
Here’s a “Hypothetical Example” of the taxes and fees a family might pay under the two Budgets. It assumes a permanent resident family whose house is valued at $1,222,000, with an average of $300 per month of electric and natural gas bills, and an assumed Transportation Utility Fee of $30 per month. You can see that under the Interim Budget their actual taxes and fees might be higher than under Truth-in-Taxation.
“Hypothetical Example” - Annual Taxes and Fees
By Don Hickman - 28 August 2026
On Tuesday, August 18 the City Council voted 3-2 to approve the Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27, July 2026 – June 2027) “Truth-in-Taxation” Budget and continue the appeal at the Utah Supreme Court seeking the authority to proceed. This budget would raise the local property tax rate from 0.000156 (Weber County’s Unincorporated County tax) to the first Ogden Valley local property tax at a rate of 0.000953 and fully fund essential government services.
Find the Truth-in-Taxation and Interim Budgets as well as the Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Book at http://ogdenvalley.gov/finances/
If the Supreme Court rules in our favor, and the Tax Commission approves our actions, the Truth-in-Taxation Budget would replace the FY27 Interim Budget, adopted on May 5, 2026, that we are currently operating against.
Instead of a property tax increase, the Interim Budget relies on the Municipal Energy Tax and a future Transportation Utility Fee to supplement sales taxes, State B and C Road taxes, and other fees to pay for minimal services. Under the Interim Budget, among other reductions, no major roads maintenance (new asphalt or chip sealing) will be done in summer 2026, critical engineering work will be delayed to the future, planning and code enforcement are reduced, and not all necessary staff will be hired.
The Truth-in-Taxation budget relies on property taxes to supplement sales taxes, State B and C Road taxes, and fees and therefore no Transportation Utility Fee would be necessary, and the Municipal Energy Tax would be rescinded.
City Council first discussed the Truth-in-Taxation Budget on April 28, 2026. Four months were available to study the issues and provide viable alternatives. It’s one thing to say No to doing something, and it is much harder to identify and argue for realistic, practical solutions (such as specific cuts to essential services and/or specific reductions in property tax rates) to the hard problems we face – none were presented at City Council on August 18th.
Here’s a “Hypothetical Example” of the taxes and fees a family might pay under the two Budgets. It assumes a permanent resident family whose house is valued at $1,222,000, with an average of $300 per month of electric and natural gas bills, and an assumed Transportation Utility Fee of $30 per month. You can see that under the Interim Budget their actual taxes and fees might be higher than under Truth-in-Taxation.
“Hypothetical Example” - Annual Taxes and Fees
| Property Tax | Municipal Energy Tax (6%) | Transportation Utility Fee | Total Annual Taxes and Fees | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Truth-in-taxation Budget | $640 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $640 |
| Interim Budget | $105 | ~$216 | ~$360 | ~$681 |
Actual Ogden Valley sales tax revenue in 2026 through July is $813,000, or an average of $116,000 per month. To be conservative, we estimated $1.3 million in the Truth-in-Taxation and Interim Budgets, because of reduced tourism so far in 2026. That’s $1.36 million less than projected in the Lieutenant Governor’s feasibility study ($2.66 million in 2027) that green-lighted the vote to incorporate. It’s not hyperbole to state that it’s a significant revenue deficit and problem for our city.
(Find the feasibility study here (see Table 5.7 on page 28) : https://ltgovernor.utah.gov/wp-content/uploads/Ogden-Valley-Mod.-Feas.-Study-FINAL.pdf)
The Truth-in-Taxation Budget would rescind the Municipal Energy Tax that City Council levied on January 6, 2026, which most, but not all of us, will begin paying this month. This tax doesn’t affect all Valley residents; the 6% tax only applies to Rocky Mountain Power and Enbridge customers and disproportionately affects high-energy consumers like agriculture.
Unlike the Municipal Energy Tax, property taxes are the most equitable tax as they apply to every property (except church and government owned). Permanent residents pay only 55% of the assessed tax, while part-time residents and owners of commercial properties pay the full assessment. Various State and County programs offer discounts on property taxes, helping those who need it most. Referring to page 20 of the Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Book, we see that a full-time resident whose house has a market value of $1,222,000 would pay $640.51 if the Supreme Court sides with us (mill rate of 0.000953), up from $104.85 (based on the current Weber County rate 0.000156).
At over $2 million per year, road maintenance is by far our largest budget expense. That covers routine work, snowplowing, and prioritized major maintenance on 104 miles of roads, many of which need significant repair. On July 28, City Council authorized our Engineers to create the Transportation Utility Fee study and anticipates voting to levy the fee on all residences and businesses later this year to fund the Interim Budget. We have already cancelled all major maintenance, and without the Transportation Utility Fee, we will not be able to pay for all the routine maintenance including snowplowing. In addition to paying for the study, we will have to create a new bureaucracy to manage the monthly billing and receipts. The study, due by the end of October, will determine fee structure – it likely will be somewhere between $20 – 60 per month per residence.
A year ago, during the campaign for city council, I repeatedly pointed out that the Lieutenant Governor’s Feasibility Study overestimated tax revenue and underestimated expenses. I committed then to creating an efficient, functioning city government that provides the essential services we all need. I made it clear that, if need be, I would vote to raise taxes. Unfortunately for us all, I was right about the feasibility study.
As District 5’s (“unincorporated Huntsville”) representative, the politically easy thing for me to have done was vote against this Truth-in-Taxation Budget. Only $5,500 of over $2.1 million of Ogden Valley’s 2027-2029 major roads maintenance plan is in District 5. (See https://ogdenvalley.gov/engineering/). Historically, snowplowing costs are disproportionately in the north end of the Valley. Most of the Engineering and Planning activities are in Eden and Liberty, where the developments are ongoing. Yet I did the unpopular and right thing – I voted to approve the budget.
For more information visit ogdenvalley.gov.
Note: This update was provided by Ogden Valley City as a community service and is independent of The Ogden Valley News.