CC 05-15-2025 Item No. 4. FY 2025-26 Proposed Budget_Desk Item1
CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
DESK ITEM
Meeting: May 15, 2025
Agenda Item #4
Subject
Initial Study Session on Fiscal Year (FY) 2025-26 Proposed Budget and FY 2025-26 Capital
Improvement Programs
Recommended Action
Initial Study Session on Fiscal Year (FY) 2025-26 Proposed Budget and FY 2025-26 Capital
Improvement Programs
Background:
Staff’s responses to questions received from councilmembers are shown in italics.
Q1: I looked up the staffing needs and total cost for the existing commissions and the
support level is 0.1 FTEs for commissions that meet monthly, for example
the Bike and Ped Commission (meets monthly): 0.1 FTE - total cost $16,815
Parks and Rec Commission (meets monthly): 0.1 FTE - total cost $25,230
Teen Commission (meets monthly): 0.1 FTE - total cost $14,908
Sustainability Commission (meets quarterly): 0.1 FTE - total $17,210
I do not see a budget section for Economic Development Commission. Since the Council
has adopted the ordinance to re-enact the Economic Development Commission, I would
expect that there is a section on the ED Commission so that we budget for the ED
Commission properly in the FY 2025-26 budget.
Staff Response: City Council adopted the second reading of the ordinance to reestablish EDC in
March. The Cupertino Muni Code should be updated by the end of May. It is anticipated that the
CMO department will be able to support the new EDC with existing staff. However, if needed, a
budget amendment to include the necessary resources to support the EDC will be prepared once the
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Muni Code is updated.
Q2: I don't think any previous city manager has ever requested 0.5 FTE alone just to support
one Commission, which meets monthly. Please provide more information to justify such a
request. Even Parks and Rec Commission which has a full agenda in almost every meeting
with updates from Senior Center, Sports Center to park projects, only requires 0.1 FTE to
support it.
Staff Response: This position request is being recommended for removal as part of the Proposed
Budget Hearing. The CMO department will be able to support the new EDC with existing staff.
Q3: Please budget for Economic Development Commission for FY 2025-26, following
Council Direction.
Staff Response: Once the Cupertino Muni Code has been updated, we will prepare a budget
amendment to include the necessary resources to support the EDC if needed.
Q4: It seems the Impact Fee Nexus Study appears under both CDD and Public Works and
the amounts are slightly different.
$400,000 for "Impact Fee Study" under CDD
$350,000 for both "Economic Development for Retail and Small Businesses and
Defensible Impact Fee Nexus Study for Traffic Impact Fee, Retail Impact Fee, BMR
Impact Fee, and Parkland Impact Fee" under CDD Economic Development Division
$300,000 for "Traffic Impact Fee" under Public Works
$300,000 for "Parkland Impact Fee" under Public Works
Thus, it's kind of confusing ... Are they the same projects or different projects? Or different
portions of the same project?
Under Traffic Engineering with 3.0 FTEs: "This budget includes a request for $300,000 for
City Work Program (CWP) item Traffic Impact Fee Study.
CDD- Proposed Budget (PDF Page 321): This budget also includes funding request for
on-call contracts in building and the following City Work Program items:
o Economic Development for Retail and Small Businesses - $200,000
o Permit Streamlining and Simplification for Small Home Upgrades - $250,000
o Add notification for SB 330 and other projects during the application approval process
- $10,000
o Unhoused Policies - $100,000
o Impact Fee Study - $400,000
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CDD - Economic Development Division (PDF Page 331): This budget includes the
following City Work Program items:
"Economic Development for Retail and Small Businesses and Defensible Impact Fee Nexus
Study for Traffic Impact Fee, Retail Impact Fee, BMR Impact Fee, and Parkland Impact Fee
$350,000"
Public Works - Proposed Budget (PDF Page 372): This budget also includes the
following City Work Program items in addition to department requests totaling,
$2,048,699:
o City Properties: Planning for Optimal Use - $200,000
o Traffic Impact Fee - $300,000
o Parkland Impact Fee - $300,000
o Water Conservation Policy - $250,000
o Urban Forest Program/Tree List - $140,000
Public Works - Traffic Engineer (PDF Page 469):
o This budget includes a request for $300,000 for City Work Program (CWP)
item Traffic Impact Fee Study.
Public Works - Public Works Administration - Proposed Budget (PDF Page 376): This
increase is due to the addition of two City Work Programs:
o $200,000 City Properties: Planning for Optimal Use and
o $300,000 for Parkland Impact Fee Study.
Staff Response: The information provided above is for two separate City Work Program items:
1. Defensible Impact Fee Nexus Study for Traffic Impact Fee, Retail Impact Fee, BMR Impact
Fee, and Parkland Impact Fee - $1 Million
Traffic Impact Fee - $300,000 in Public Works
Parkland Impact Fee - $300,000 in Public Works
Retail Impact Fee - $150,000 in Community Development
BMR Impact Fee - $250,000 in Community Development
2. Economic Development for Retail and Small Businesses - $200,000
These are separate items that are budgeted in both Community Development and Public Works.
These appear in the budget under each respective department and division. For clarity on the City
Work Program budgets, please refer to page 12-13 in the proposed budget book. However, page 265
BMR Affordable Housing Fund show the incorrect CWP item, Develop ELI Housing $250,000,
this should be labeled BMR Impact Fees. ELI Housing is funded in FY 2024-25. A correction will
be made in the Final Budget.
Q5: Include detailed breakdown of how water lease is presented in the forecast (Proposed
Budget Briefing Questions Received)
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Staff Response:
The water lease revenue is included under the Miscellaneous Revenue category at $1,841,667
annually in all years of the forecast. This figure is based on the upfront lease payment the City
received, which has been amortized evenly over the 12-year term of the agreement with San Jose
Water Company for financial planning purposes.
Q6: Describe what/ how recurring vs one-time affects our years (Proposed Budget Briefing
Questions Received)
Staff Response:
• One-time cost – occur only once and are not included in ongoing base costs
• Recurring costs – occur in the budget year in which they are requested and then added to
department base budget. Lastly, they are incorporated into the 10-year forecast.
Q7: Format festival fee waivers chart on p 286 to include current year to date costs?
(Proposed Budget Briefing Questions Received)
Staff Response: The table below shows year to date costs in the column shown in pink and yellow.
Q8: Add an explanatory section on budget not equaling forecast due to vacancy (Proposed
Budget Briefing Questions Received)
Staff Response: A response to this question is included in the staff presentation for tonight and will
also be included in the Adopted Budget. “The deficit in the FY26 General Fund forecast differs from
the FY26 proposed budget, due to the 4% vacancy savings that are factored into the forecast but
cannot be factored into proposed as we budget by position and do not know where vacancies in the
City will occur for the next fiscal year.”
Q9: Breakout sheriffs' contract from contract services for better comparison to other
agencies (Proposed Budget Briefing Questions Received)
Staff Response: A response to this question is included in the staff presentation for tonight and will
also be included in the Adopted Budget.
Total Costs
FY 2025-26
Kids N Fun Festival Saturday, August 23, 2025 Taiwanese Cultural and Sports Association $1,861 $5,177 $3,447 $4,495 $14,979 $1,850 $4,283 $3,395 $4,041
Day N Night Fun Fest Saturday, September 13, 2025 Cupertino Rotary $2,977 $7,760 $5,205 $4,495 $20,437 $2,788 $7,259 $5,179 $4,202
Diwali Festival Saturday, October 11, 2025 Cupertino Chamber of Commerce $2,419 $5,123 $3,404 $4,805 $15,751 $2,405 $4,490 $3,404 $4,596
Ikebana* Sat.-Sun., October 18-19, 2025 WAFU Ikebana Society $3,031 $25,427 $17 $0 $28,475 $0 $0 $0 $0
Veterans Day Tuesday, November 11, 2025 Veteran's Memorial $1,312 $0 $0 $0 $1,500 $2,812 $1,308 $0 $0 $0 $1,009
Egg Hunt*No Application Submitted
for 25/26 The Home of Christ Church in Cupertino $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0
Holi Date TBD for 25/26 Cupertino Chamber of Commerce $1,476 $2,000 $2,605 $3,410 $9,491 $1,471 $2,000 $2,605 $2,790
Cherry Blossom Sat.-Sun., April 25-26, 2026 Toyokawa Sister City $6,693 $20,956 $11,633 $11,780 $51,061 $6,622 $21,649 $11,633 $11,780
Dilli Haat Saturday, June 6, 2026 Empower Uplift Inc. $2,406 $2,288 $3,505 $4,030 $12,230 $2,849 $7,270 $2,913 $5,425
Costs for FY 25/26 Events $24,718 $74,421 $33,783 $36,735 $1,500 $171,156 $21,816 $53,091 $33,091 $36,446 $1,009
*These events did not occur in FY 24/25.TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL
Waived
Fees
FY25/26
City
Paid
FY25/26
Festival
Costs
FY25/26
Waived
Fees
FY24/25
City Paid
Actuals
FY24/25
These are the budgeted amounts for FY 24/25. Invoices are in progress or event has yet to occur in FY 24/25.
$132,922.00
Bhubaneswar Sister City
City Initiative (CBSCI) $2,522 $6,140 $3,961 $3,612
$38,235.00 $171,156.00 $107,997.00 $37,455.00
$3,720 $15,920
Materials Total
Saturday, September 20, 2025 Cupertino Bhubaneswar Sister City $2,543 $5,690 $3,967
Waived Fees FY 2025-26 City Paid Expenses
FY 2025-26 Waived Fees FY 2024-25 City Paid Actuals
FY 2024-25
Festival Date Festival Producer Recreation Public Works Sheriff MaterialsRecreation Public Works Sheriff
Facility/
Park/
Road
Permits
Facility/
Park/
Road
Permits
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Q10: How did we calculate the 3k in CC meals (Proposed Budget Briefing Questions
Received)
Staff Response: It costs on average $207 per meeting assuming 2 meetings a month, approximately
$5,000. There is already $2,000 in the base budget allocated for this. The $3,000 is the delta needed
to fully fund meals for anticipated City Council meetings.
Q11: Change chart (staff) showing beginning cost, new cost, and then additional/decrease
in cost per position (Proposed Budget Briefing Questions Received)
Staff Response: Included in the presentation is a response to this question which will be included in
the Adopted Budget.
Q12: Change under filled position to show a decrease in cost (Proposed Budget Briefing
Questions Received)
DifferenceProposed
Salary &
Benefits
Proposed
Classification
Current
Salary &
Benefit Cost
Current
Classification
$14,656$253,803Sr. Business Systems
Analyst
$239,147Business Systems
Analyst
$17,011$291,532Assistant Director of
Administrative
Services
$274,521Budget
Manager
$53,546$242,552Code Enforcement
Supervisor
$189,006Sr. Code
Enforcement
Officer
$(105,126)$170,634Assistant Housing
Coordinator
$275,760Housing
Manager
$(19,913)$958,521$978,434Total
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Staff Response: A response to this question is included in the staff presentation for tonight and will
also be included in the Adopted Budget. See table above that shows the decrease in cost.
Q13: I found that the estimate for staffing support for commissions supported by CDD tend
to be higher than those commissions supported by other departments, such as Public
Works or Parks and Rec. For example, I was surprised that the Housing Commission would
require 0.4 FTE to support when there is usually just one major item on the Housing
Commission agenda, the CDBG grants. Occasionally, the Housing Commission might have
some BMR policy on the agenda. But the effort to prepare the policy should not be charged
to Housing Commission since the staff has to develop the policy anyway in order to bring
it to the Council. Thus, I do not understand why the Housing Commission would budget
0.25 FTE or 0.35 FTE or even 0.15 FTE for staffing.
In FY 23-24, Housing Commission had a total of 4 meetings with two other cancelled
meetings. Most items are about CDBG grants and one is about a new fee "New Fee for
Below Market Rate (BMR) Ownership Resales," which I do not remember any council
direction on that. I might be confused.
Per Muni Code, Housing Commission meets quarterly.
In comparison, for the Parks and Rec Commission which has a fuller agenda, the staffing
level is only 0.1 FTE.
In FY 23-24, Parks and Rec Commission had a total of 7 meetings with some other
cancelled meetings.
Per Muni Code, Parks and Rec Commission meets monthly.
For Bike and Ped Commission, which also has full agenda, the staffing level is only 0.5 FTE.
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In FY 23-24, Bike and Ped Commission had a total of 11 meetings.
Per Muni Code, Bike and Ped Commission meets monthly.
Staff Response: Each commission and committee may require different levels of staffing support
depending on their meeting frequency, duties, and functions. For example, although the Municipal
Code requires the Housing Commission to meet quarterly, it has averaged nearly 8 meetings per
year over the past four years. In addition to reviewing CDBG funding, the commission has also
discussed complex topics such as BMR housing, homelessness, the Housing Element, and items
from the City Work Program, and require the preparation of staff reports and presentations, which
involve significant time and coordination, including internal meetings, research, drafts and
revisions, reviews by senior staff, etc.
In the coming weeks, staff will be able to take a holistic approach to review staffing allocations across
all commissions and committees and will return with recommendations, if necessary, to reallocate
resources accordingly.
Q14: Plan check contract costs- what is the amount in contract services in replacement to
Salary & Benefits (Proposed Budget Briefing Questions Received)
Staff Response:
On-call services provide support when there are peaks in applications is both advantageous and
necessary to sustain the city’s expected service level. All Plan Review costs are pass-through and paid
for via plan check fees charged by the City and paid by the applicants. There is no actual funding
allocation from the City to pay for services. Overall, 10% of the City’s Plan Review projects are sent
out to consultants.
Plan Review consultants are On-Call and utilized for additional assistance as needed. When large
projects come through that require a sudden high volume of work and span multiple engineering sectors,
the impact would cause a delay in daily operations and services such as plan review for smaller projects
for our residents and the Cupertino community and counter reception and assistance. Having the plan
review consultants on-call to send out the larger projects maximizes efficiencies since the consultants
have large teams of specialized staff to review and process the plan review more expeditiously and cost
effectively. Furthermore, the flexibility of having the consultants on-call is advantageous in adjusting
to the ebbs and flows of the influx of projects. This flexibility is key to managing the flow of the workload
in the most efficient way possible.
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AB 2234 stipulates that jurisdictions must ascertain the completion of a post-entitlement phase permit
application within 15 days of its submission. Project reviews for developments consisting of 25 units
or fewer must be finalized within 30 days, while those with 26 units or more require completion within
60 days. The use of consultant plan reviewers allows CDD to comply with this mandate while
maintaining the daily workflow timelines as expected by our citizens.
Plan Check
100-73-714 FY23 FY24 FY25
Revenue
Received $438,148 $598,168 $592,462
Direct Contract
Expenses $284,796 $388,809 $385,100
Available for
City Staff and
Material Costs
$153,352 $209,359 $207,362
The fully loaded cost (salary + benefits) for Plan Check Engineer = $242,337
There are two full-time Plan Check Engineers in this program. There are no current
vacancies. $242,337 x 2 = $484,674
Attachments Provided with Original Staff Report:
A – FY 2025-26 Proposed Budget
B – FY 2025-26 CIP
C – FY 25-26 Community Funding Recommendation from Parks and Recreation Commission
Attachments Provided with Supplemental Report:
D – Department Requests with Account Codes