EUGENE, Ore. – Concerned residents are voicing their issues with anticipated budget cuts to important public services in the 2025-2027 fiscal year for Eugene.
During a city council meeting on May 12, more than 30 public comments were entered. Many of those comments came from people defending services expected to be on the chopping block, including the Eugene Public Library, Amazon Pool, and services that help Greehill Human Society.
The budget is expected to be adopted on June 23, and city manager Sarah Medary explained how this tough position for the city came to be.
“This is the second time I’ve presented an amended budget in response to financial uncertainty. The first was in 2020, at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, when revenues declined rapidly while community needs became more complex and widespread,” Medary said in a public message in the most recent budget plan. “Today’s amendment is necessitated by the uncertainty surrounding the Fire Service Fee, which was expected to generate $10 million in new revenue annually – $8 million to stabilize current fire services and $2 million to expand fire services. That revenue is now in question due to a referendum petition that will not be resolved before the budget must be adopted.”…