News & Announcements

Print Feedback

Font Size: + -

Finance 101: Hillsboro's General Fund

by Robby Hammond, Hillsboro City Manager

Post Date:07/21/2023

Robby Hammond headshot For the first time in Hillsboro’s history, the Hillsboro City Council adopted a biennial budget for the 2023–25 biennium, following the Hillsboro Budget Committee’s approval in May.

The City of Hillsboro produces each budget to reflect the goals of the Hillsboro 2035 Community Plan, the City’s Equity Statement and our core values, and the City Council’s priorities and guiding principles.

This inaugural, $1.87 billion biennial budget is a fiscally responsible plan to help meet our growing community’s needs and expectations. One large component of the two-year plan is the City’s General Fund.

The General Fund

When you pay property taxes in October, some of that money goes to the City of Hillsboro’s General Fund, which is then used to pay for essential services for more than 109,000 residents and thousands of businesses.

Our biennial budget will pay for a new fire station serving the South Hillsboro neighborhood and other essential services, including:

Public Safety (Police, Fire & Rescue)
Parks & Recreation
Library
Community Planning & more

City Budget cover This budget was challenging for our General Fund in particular, which was significantly impacted by COVID-19-related reductions in recreation revenues and hotel tax revenues, as well as increased medical costs, labor costs, inflation, and more.

The City came into the pandemic with a healthy General Fund reserve balance, which allowed for a more thoughtful response to the simultaneous revenue reductions and rising costs. The 2023–25 biennial budget includes a transfer of $20.5 million of one-time, discretionary funds, including American Rescue Plan Act funds and Strategic Investment Program funds, into the General Fund.

This is one step we are taking to make sure the General Fund ends the biennium with a reserve fund balance of at least 15% of expenses, per the City’s long-standing financial policy and best practices.

We will also look at potential revenue enhancement and cost containment strategies to ensure stable and adequate reserves. We’re grateful to have a strong team with a history of managing budgets and meeting our growing community’s expectations for high-quality services.