Sacramento City Council Meeting – May 5, 2026

The Sacramento City Council met on May 5, 2026, from 5:07 PM to 8:58 PM for a regular meeting that included special presentations recognizing Affordable Housing Month and AAPI Heritage Month, followed by a detailed review of the Fiscal Year 2026/27 Proposed Budget. The council heard from 27 public speakers on the budget and several more on matters not on the agenda. Key decisions included direction to staff to submit proposed budget amendments by Thursday, May 7, and a commitment to address a $66.2 million structural deficit.

Special Presentations

• Affordable Housing Month Resolution – Presented by Vice Mayor Talamantes, who shared a personal story of growing up in affordable housing. Julio Lamas, Executive Director of the Sacramento Housing Alliance, accepted the resolution and emphasized the need for sustained public investment, tenant protections, and inclusive growth. Several council members expressed support and noted the city's pro-housing designation and efforts to build dignified affordable housing.
• AAPI Heritage Month – Presented by Councilmember Vang, recognizing the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander community. Representatives from Cal Defense and the Asian American Liberation Network spoke on protecting immigrant and refugee communities. Steve Itigaki, co-president of the city's API employee resource group, highlighted the importance of the theme and invited council to a cultural luncheon on May 14.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Greg Jefferson (Del Paso Heights Community Association) – Urged continued funding for park rangers and violence prevention/intervention programs, citing concerns about gun violence in District 2.
• Mary Tappel (District 2 resident) – Requested funding for youth violence prevention, safe parks, bike trails, fire prevention (mowing), and removal of hazardous materials from illegal camps.
• Jessica Nicholson & Ben Nicholson (Southside Park residents) – Criticized proposed pool hour reductions, noting the pool was recently renovated and is a resource for low-income families. They asked for expanded hours and better communication.
• Mervyn Brookens – Asked the city to invest in youth prevention and intervention programs, saying youth need to feel seen and valued.
• John Frias Morales – Called for fully funding police and cutting homelessness spending, citing statistics on crime, fires, and fentanyl deaths.
• Lambert – Suggested savings by reducing remote worker raises and giving youth jobs, criticized city spending discipline.
• Brian Powers (Pocket area resident) – Supported fully funding police, referenced a shooting at Natomas High School, and urged reinstatement of school resource officers.
• Crystal Gonzalez (Sacramento Youth Center) – Pleaded for continued funding of the GPIT Initiative, stating it prevents violence and saves money long-term.
• Mike Snell – Called for optimizing civic engagement programs and widening the tax base, not just cutting.
• Christina Rogers – Supported core services (parks, public safety) but expressed concern about eliminating the mounted police unit, citing crowd control needs.
• Marnie Ledger (Southside Park Neighborhood Association president) – Urged making Southside Pool a hub pool, noting volunteer fundraising and its importance to low-income families.
• Karen Corbes – Demanded a well-funded police department, stating public safety is foundational to economic development.
• Stephanie Duncan (District 7 renter) – Advocated for fully funding core services (police, fire, EMS, roads) and auditing nonprofits receiving city funds.
• Kayleigh Olgerson (Sacramento Metro Chamber) – Supported the new economic development department but stressed public safety as foundation for growth.
• Madeline Knoll (Downtown Sacramento Partnership) – Thanked staff for baseline budget and urged continued focus on public safety.
• Chris Valencia (North State Building Industry Association) – Opposed new fees on developers, urged fast-tracking major projects to grow the tax base.
• James Allison (Power & Alliance) – Supported economic development and public safety, emphasized growing the pie through investment.
• Vito Scromo (Midtown resident) – Noted the city has 1.2 police officers per 1,000 residents vs. national average of 2.4, urged considering future impacts.
• John Vignotchi (Sacramento Regional Business Leaders Council) – Proposed cutting non-essential programs (e.g., OPSA, DEI office), outsourcing services, charging for residential parking, and eliminating the PLA.
• Mar Baya (Gardenland Neighborhood Association) – Opposed cuts to Doyle Pool and community center hours, emphasized prevention programs like Brother to Brother.
• Paris Dye (Impact SAC) – Warned that losing CalVIP and GPIT funding would devastate violence prevention, noted loss of $5M from Sierra Health Foundation.
• Deion Vay Brown, Kay Audrey Walker, Samaria Marshall, Jaden Talbot (youth from Impact SAC) – Shared personal stories of how the program provided mentorship, safety, and purpose; urged continued funding.
• James Demas (Impact SAC youth mentor) – Read quotes from youth about the program's importance, asked council not to cut funding.

Discussion Items

• Fiscal Year 2026/27 Proposed Budget Overview – City Manager Maraskeshia Smith presented the budget, closing a $66.2 million gap through a combination of ongoing reductions (75% of balancing strategies) and one-time measures. The $1.7 billion budget includes $898 million general fund. Key reductions: 163.8 FTEs, including 35.9 filled positions (37 individuals), mostly in parks. Proposed cuts: elimination of four wading pools, reduced recreation swim hours, elimination of Summer at City Hall, discontinuation of ShotSpotter in south and east (retained in north), elimination of the mounted police unit, reductions in specialized police units, and contracting out some park maintenance. Restorations from March baseline: Magnet Academy, affordable housing fee program, community center/senior center hours, DEI staffing, and partial fire restoration. The budget does not include charging for residential parking or increasing meter rates. The five-year forecast shows a $35 million deficit in FY28, growing to $62.6 million in FY29 due to loss of state homelessness funding and pension costs.
• Council Deliberation – Mayor McCarty requested council members submit proposed amendments by Thursday. Council members expressed concerns and asked for restorations:
  • Mayor McCarty asked staff to explore frontloading CalVIP grant funding to maintain violence prevention programs.
  • Councilmember Pluckebaum proposed making additional cuts now to reset the budget, creating a $35 million one-time surplus for restorations.
  • Councilmember Guerra questioned the impact of eliminating the hiring pipeline for police and fire, and requested analysis on pool and senior center cuts.
  • Councilmember Vang opposed cutting youth programs (e.g., Summer at City Hall, GPIT), noting Measure L cannot cover all youth needs. She highlighted that 30 of 35.9 eliminated positions are from YIPS.
  • Councilmember Kaplan asked about the pension liability increase ($16.6M over four years), homelessness funding (33.6M general fund), and requested data on microcommunity costs vs. motel vouchers.
  • Councilmember Maple supported restoring youth programs and pools, and questioned the X Street shelter transition.
  • Councilmember Dickinson raised concerns about long-vacant parking enforcement positions, North Sacramento economic development funding, and wading pools.
  • Vice Mayor Talamantes supported restoring GPIT funding, the mounted unit, SROs, and Summer at City Hall, and proposed capping homelessness spending.

Key Outcomes

• Council took no final vote on the budget; the item was reviewed, commented on, and direction was provided.
• Council members will submit written proposals for budget amendments by Thursday, May 7, 2026.
• Staff will provide supplemental information on residential parking fees, meter rates, and CalVIP grant frontloading.
• The budget adoption is scheduled for June 2026, with a follow-up hearing on May 12.
• City Manager Smith emphasized the need to “choose hard” and fix the structural imbalance, noting that three consecutive years of cuts are unsustainable for staff and city services.