Council questions HOT forecasts and asks staff to identify savings options

After the four departmental presentations, councilmembers engaged staff on a range of budgetary issues, focusing on the hotel occupancy tax, funding transfers, arts maintenance and potential revenue offsets.

Councilmember Kore asked why HOT projections for FY27 appeared lower; staff explained FY26 receipts included a one-time back-taxes payment of roughly $2.7 million and that underlying growth is roughly 1.1%. Councilmembers probed slide backups and transfers and asked whether particular general-fund allocations (for example the $1.5M to support the Carver Center and $500,000 for art maintenance) could be shifted to HOT or reallocated elsewhere.

Multiple council members also pressed Visit San Antonio and convention staff on the risk that other Texas convention-center expansions could displace large multi-year events and requested a financial analysis of that potential loss. The mayor and members emphasized the need to find savings, insisting staff present options that would free general-fund dollars if possible.

Staff committed to follow-up memos with detailed transfer breakdowns, peer comparisons, potential reallocation options and a clearer timeline for competing cities' projects.