Colorado Springs proposes $465.5 million 2027 budget with $9.37 million property-tax credit
The proposal relies on sales-tax growth and includes compensation changes. Council review and a planned appropriation vote are still ahead.
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Colorado Springs finance staff proposed a balanced $465.5 million General Fund budget for 2027, $38.2 million more than the amended 2026 budget. It includes a $9.37 million property-tax credit. The City Council discussed the proposal at its Oct. 15 work session but took no formal budget action, where finance staff outlined the plan.
Sales and use taxes account for 58% of projected General Fund revenue. Staff forecast 2.8% ongoing sales-tax growth from its 2026 year-end estimate, rising to 3.5% when revenue attributed to two new tax-enforcement positions is included. Property-tax revenue is projected to grow 4.5%. The proposed 1.07-mill property-tax credit would reduce the city’s collections by an estimated $9.37 million, according to staff; the presentation did not estimate the credit’s effect on an individual property owner’s bill.
The proposal also includes about $12.3 million in one-time revenue for one-time uses, including reserves and capital projects. Staff said it intended to avoid using those funds for ongoing costs, since temporary revenue cannot reliably support recurring expenses.
Staff estimated the General Fund reserve level at 21.8% entering 2026, above the 16.7% benchmark it attributed to the Government Finance Officers Association. That figure is a 2026 estimate, not a projection of the 2027 reserve balance.
Personnel costs—salaries, benefits and pensions—make up about 72% of proposed General Fund spending and are projected to rise about $19.1 million over the amended 2026 budget. The proposal includes roughly $2 million for civilian performance increases averaging 2%, $812,000 for eligible civilian employees’ progression increases of up to 4%, and market adjustments and step progressions for sworn police and fire employees. Staff said the proposed sworn market adjustments would move each rank about one-third of the way toward market. The changes remain proposals; the salary schedule was expected to come before council separately.
The planned next steps are a public hearing Oct. 26 and a budget markup session Oct. 29. The City Clerk’s agenda planner lists the annual appropriation ordinance for the 2027 budget as new business at the Nov. 10 council meeting.