The City Council adopted a balanced City budget for 2026-2027 fiscal year at their regular meeting on Monday, June 15. The annual budget serves as a major policy document and describes how Piedmont intends to deliver its services and fund infrastructure in the coming year.

The FY2026-27 budget maintains service levels citywide, prioritizing high quality service delivery and fiscal responsibility while reflecting a transition from major project delivery to long-term stewardship following the completion of a unprecedented volume of capital improvements and housing policy work over the past several years.

Key priorities in the coming year will be:

• moving from launch to sustainable long-term operations at new facilities – refining operations and service models based on real-world use, fully staffing operations, and managing costs to ensure these major investments deliver their full potential value to the community

• recruiting and integrating new staff as the City moves through a generational workplace transition

• securing a development partner for implementation of the Moraga Canyon Specific Plan

While the City’s Facilities Capital Fund has been significantly drawn down due to the high volume of capital projects completed in recent years, next year’s budget continues to invest in public spaces citywide. Capital improvements planned for the coming year include:

• installation of the Sidney and Irene Dearing Memorial at Triangle Park
• new swings, ADA access upgrades, and nature play elements at the Piedmont Park tot lot
• pedestrian safety improvements at four intersections along Moraga Avenue
• replacement of 17,000 feet of aging city sewers – roughly 12% of the City’s total sanitary sewer system
• continuation of park pathway repairs in Piedmont and Dracena parks
• turf replacement at Hampton field

Looking ahead at the City’s large volume of unfunded capital needs, the Council also voted to place an increase to Piedmont’s real estate transfer tax – a one-time tax levied on a property at the time of sale – on the November ballot. The proposed ordinance would increase the transfer tax from 1.3% to 1.75%, better aligning Piedmont’s rate with neighboring cities and generating an additional $1.5 million annually. The ballot measure would require a majority vote to pass.

This vote was the first step in the process of placing a measure on the November ballot. A second vote is tentatively scheduled for the Council’s July 6 meeting, at which time the Council would have the ability to make changes to the proposed new tax rate. The deadline to submit materials to the Registrar of Voters for the November ballot is August 7.

The proposed transfer tax increase was recommended by the City’s Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee.