Lower Valley Matters

By: Mike Fong & Laura Solis, Lower Valley Matters

November 7, 2026

The preliminary 2027 budget released by Granger Mayor Hilda González ahead of the budget retreat in October revealed that the city will likely need to dramatically reduce its estimated revenues compared to 2026. This negative outlook is primarily related to assumptions that the city is expected to collect far less sales tax revenue in 2027 compared to recent years and suggests that City Hall is anticipating business activity in town to slow down next year.

The preliminary budget anticipates that the city will collect $250,000 in sales tax in 2027. But last year, the city projected that it would receive nearly $500,000 in sales tax revenues for 2026. That projection has fallen significantly short of reality: as of the end of September, the city had collected only $183,851.80 in sales tax. This means that the city will potentially miss its 2026 projection by as much as 50% and end the year closer to $250,000 in sales tax revenue. 

In 2023, Granger collected $324,000 in sales tax revenues, and in 2024, over $500,000 came into city coffers. A drop to $250,000 for 2026 and 2027 would be significant.

Beyond the dramatic decline in expected sales tax revenues, the city’s preliminary budget also reflects reduced expectations for fees collected for building permits (down from $36,000 to $20,000), permit plan reviews (down from $20,000 to $9,500) and planning and development services (down from $4,000 to $2,500). These are all indicators that the city expects a slow down in new construction or remodels – which will result in less funding for the city.

The decrease in projected general fund revenues is a big driver for why the mayor has reportedly informed the council that budget cuts and reductions in services will be part of the budget discussions going forward this fall.

In looking at the other side of the ledger – the expenditures – there are a few expected cost increases worth highlighting. The administrative budget shows a proposed $30,000 increase in costs largely tied to insurance and legal services for claims and litigation. Salaries and wages for Police, Finance, Code Enforcement and Building Inspection departments appear to be going up between 10-12%. There’s also a substantial increase in projected police overtime costs (only $5,000 in the 2026 budget but $30,000 for 2027 based on actual use of OT this year). Only the Parks department will see a decline in its budget for salaries.  

Lower Valley Matters hopes to keep readers informed of the budget deliberations over the next few weeks. We have requested the audio recording of the city’s budget retreat from October through a public records request but have not received it. Because we can’t yet report on what the mayor and city council discussed at the retreat, this summary is an early look based on what we can deduce at this time. Our focus was general fund departments and not streets fund and utilities until we have more information to share in those areas.

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