Splash pads will go on as scheduled this summer and the public library will stay open longer after the city budget committee voted unanimously Wednesday evening to approve an updated budget proposal likely to go into effect in July. 

The passage of the updated budget, which factors in new revenue from a property tax increase approved by voters last week, was met with applause, and budget committee members seemed relieved and were able to conclude their meeting within about an hour. 

Prior meetings have gone on long into the night as the committee discussed layoffs and deep cuts to city services. 

The change means the city will be spared budget cuts across departments, and the new revenue ensures the continuation of parks and recreation services and Center 50+.

Library hours will be increased from 38 hours to 48 hours a week at the main branch and from 10 hours to 20 hours a week at the West Salem branch. 

Interim City Manager Krishna Namburi said the library hours expansion won’t happen immediately because the city still needs to hire three new library employees. In the meantime, library hours and services will remain the same.  

The preservation of city services and the library hours expansion will cost the average Salem homeowner about $220 more in annual property taxes. It’s expected to bring in about $14 million over the next year. Roughly 58% of voters were in favor of the levy, according to results from the Oregon Secretary of State’s office.

The original recommended budget would have slashed the equivalent of 51 full-time jobs, some of them vacant. The updated budget restores 45 of those jobs and adds the three new library employee positions.  

The levy will also allow the city to roll back some of the temporary cost saving measures implemented in February, restoring equipment replacement, supplies, and overtime costs among others. The revised budget affords roughly $10 million more in spending.

Namburi said the levy makes the city’s nearly $14 million budget deficit far more manageable. She said the projected deficit for fiscal year 2027 is now $870,000 according to current projections.

“This levy, the way that I look at it, it gave us a lifeline. And what we do with it, how we lead, how we plan, and how we serve, that will determine how strong Salem becomes,” Namburi said Wednesday night. “At 12 months out this feels far more manageable. So, what collectively this community has done, we took a problem that was impossible to solve, and we made it a manageable problem. So, I wanted to thank the community for trusting us with this.” 

Namburi said the levy drastically changes the city’s short-term financial forecast. It now shows higher fund balances for the next three years, a rarity for Salem, she said. 

“We are projected to remain above the city council’s fund balance through fiscal year 2028. This happened by design and the passing of this levy is the main one that contributed to it,” Namburi said. “But I also want to share, we have been very intentional in pursuing one-time revenues and continuing cost saving measures here at the city, and that helped.”

Namburi said the city’s financial forecast assumes aggressive savings and revenue assumptions and said it relies on the hope of no unexpected expenses from the state’s pension system or due to other labor market trends. 

“These next three years give us a critical window to keep pursuing sustainable revenue opportunities including support from the state,” Namburi said. 

The updated budget proposal will be brought before the city council for likely approval on June 23.

Contact reporter Joe Siess: [email protected] or 503-335-7790.

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