Visalia council approves Measure N spending plan and two-year budget extension
March 16, 2026 | Visalia, Tulare County, California
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Visalia's City Council on a 4-0 vote on the work-session agenda approved a proposed extension of Measure N's 10-year expenditure plan and adopted the two-year proposed budget for fiscal years 2026-27 and 2027-28.
Amy Swearingen, the city's budget analyst, told the council Measure N is a half-cent sales tax approved by voters in 2016 that funds essential city services including police, fire, recreation and maintenance. "Ten percent of budgeted revenues must be split into the following categories; 2% for youth programs and 8% for maintenance and emerging needs," Swearingen said, describing the measure's rules and reporting requirements.
The staff proposal rolls the Measure N revenues into a new 10-year plan. Swearingen said staff conservatively projected continued growth and recommended continuing positions and programs funded by the original plan while adding items such as seven new police officers and design and construction funding for Station 57 in later years. For the first year of the two-year budget the proposal includes an additional appropriation of $21 million for construction of Station 51, which drives the larger-than-usual first-year total.
Swearingen noted that the measure requires a standing uncertainty fund: "We've maintained the fund balance at 30% of operating expenditures," she said, adding that at June 30, 2025 that balance was $3,100,000. Council members also discussed the measure's youth category and the $75,000 annual allocation for PAL league activities.
Councilmember [mover] moved to approve the proposed 10-year measure plan and the fiscal 2026-27 and 2027-28 budgets; the motion was seconded and passed 4-0 with Councilwoman Nelson absent.
Why it matters: The vote preserves voter-directed spending priorities for public safety, parks and infrastructure and authorizes a near-term capital investment in a new fire station that staff and council said is needed to maintain service levels. Next steps in the Measure N process include review by the sales tax oversight board and two public hearings before final budget adoption.
Amy Swearingen, the city's budget analyst, told the council Measure N is a half-cent sales tax approved by voters in 2016 that funds essential city services including police, fire, recreation and maintenance. "Ten percent of budgeted revenues must be split into the following categories; 2% for youth programs and 8% for maintenance and emerging needs," Swearingen said, describing the measure's rules and reporting requirements.
The staff proposal rolls the Measure N revenues into a new 10-year plan. Swearingen said staff conservatively projected continued growth and recommended continuing positions and programs funded by the original plan while adding items such as seven new police officers and design and construction funding for Station 57 in later years. For the first year of the two-year budget the proposal includes an additional appropriation of $21 million for construction of Station 51, which drives the larger-than-usual first-year total.
Swearingen noted that the measure requires a standing uncertainty fund: "We've maintained the fund balance at 30% of operating expenditures," she said, adding that at June 30, 2025 that balance was $3,100,000. Council members also discussed the measure's youth category and the $75,000 annual allocation for PAL league activities.
Councilmember [mover] moved to approve the proposed 10-year measure plan and the fiscal 2026-27 and 2027-28 budgets; the motion was seconded and passed 4-0 with Councilwoman Nelson absent.
Why it matters: The vote preserves voter-directed spending priorities for public safety, parks and infrastructure and authorizes a near-term capital investment in a new fire station that staff and council said is needed to maintain service levels. Next steps in the Measure N process include review by the sales tax oversight board and two public hearings before final budget adoption.
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