Salt Lake County budget passes...

In a historic move, the Salt Lake County Council cut more from the budget than ever before—over $12.4 million in ongoing general fund dollars. As a result, the Mayor’s proposed 19.6% property tax increase was reduced to 14.6%. This increase applies only to the Salt Lake County line item on your property tax statement—not your entire property tax bill.

This reduction is significant because the general fund is extremely difficult to cut: 74% of it supports public safety, including the jail, prosecution, and criminal justice services. Many assume that items like golf courses, recreation centers, and convention centers rely on property taxes, but they do not. Those facilities primarily use tourism sales tax revenues, and golf operates as an enterprise fund, meaning it is funded solely by the revenues it generates.

Where the $12.4 million in cuts came from:

• Froze salaries for elected officials and limited other pay increases
• Reduced positions within the Mayor’s Office
• Shifted the Clark Planetarium from property tax funding to tourism tax funding
• Ended programs previously supported by temporary ARPA/COVID dollars
• Streamlined property tax usage to core services — including ending a daycare program that subsidized $7,300 per child for just 271 children, costing taxpayers $2 million annually with no income qualification. Expanding this county-run model to all children under 12 would have required a 583% property tax increase.
• Declined to fund many new positions requested across departments

One takeaway from this budget season is how many residents believe that rising home values automatically drive up their property taxes. Under Utah’s Truth-in-Taxation system, that is not the case. Local governments receive the same property tax revenue each year (plus new growth) unless they formally propose a tax increase and go through the required public process. This means local governments do not capture inflation automatically. For more details, visit my budget FAQ at tinyurl.com/slcobudget.

I dislike property taxes as much as anyone, but under state law, this is the primary tool counties have when inflationary adjustments become necessary. The final budget passed with near-unanimous support. One colleague voted no but did not propose alternative cuts to balance the budget. 

One thing that stood out during this year’s process is how crucial working relationships are. Our council is the most evenly divided partisan body in the state—five Republicans, four Democrats, and a Democratic mayor. This balance requires collaboration, and there is no room for extreme politics. We debate issues vigorously, but we also work to maintain strong professional relationships. You never know when you will need someone’s support for an ordinance change or a budget adjustment.

I am grateful for the eight people I serve with. We may disagree on the proper role of government or how taxpayer dollars should be used, but we listen respectfully and shake hands afterward. Congress could learn a thing or two from the Salt Lake County Council.