The City of Signal Hill approved its first-ever biennial budget for fiscal years 2026 and 2027 at the June 23 city council meeting, with a focus on upcoming projects and optimistic planning. For fiscal year 2026-27, Signal Hill projects a general fund balance of $82.6 million, and for fiscal year 2027-28, a budget of $73.8 million is projected.
The roughly $8 million difference between the two years is due to investments into future projects, City staff said.
This marks the first time Signal Hill has approved two annual budgets simultaneously. The reason for the proposed biennial budget was to “exercise additional caution in recognition of ongoing economic uncertainty, elevated costs, and the potential for slower revenue growth,” according to the 228-page budget. City departments have been analyzing their own operating budgets since the beginning of the year in preparation for this budget.
The police department has the largest budget among all departments, making up 41% of the general fund, followed by Public Works taking up 20% of the budget and finance, IT and non-department spending making up 14% of the general fund. Signal Hill expects to spend about $38 million each year for the following departments:
- Police: $16 million
- Public Works: $7.5 million
- Finance, IT and Non-Department: $5.5 million
- Parks, Recreation, and Library Services: $3.9 million
- Legislative and administration: $3 million
- Community Development Department: $2.5 million
The City projects a revenue of about $38.3 million for 2026-27 and $38.9 million for 2027-28. Signal Hill expects about $28 million, roughly 66% of its general fund, to come from sales and use taxes, a $1.4 million reduction from previous years. This dip is due to the unknown economic state of the country, like widespread inflation, high interest rates and higher energy costs.
Meanwhile, property tax makes up 7% of the City’s revenues and is expected to remain stable, according to the budget. Oil production only makes up about 1% of the City’s revenue.
Signal Hill also has about $27 million in its reserves committed to items such as insurance, parks, police equipment, art, the Civic Center Master Plan, economic development, workforce and unforeseen emergencies. Reserves consist of rollover funds from previous years and planned contributions for future years.
Signal Hill organizes its reserves into three buckets:
- Type I: For emergencies and adversities like economic downturns
- Type II: For specific purposes only, including employee retirement funds and insurance
- Type III: This makes up the remaining uses for reserve funds, which in the budget are listed as debt service, park, police equipment, capital improvement, general plan, art and more.
A few big projects are on the horizon in the next couple of years, including one of the largest items in the Civic Center Master Plan: the new Signal Hill Amphitheater at Signal Hill Park, expected to be completed soon. As part of that plan, Signal Hill received $1.8 million from Congressman Alan Lowenthal’s office for the Civic Center Parking Lot Improvement Project, slated for completion next fiscal year.
The City will also use $2.78 million from a CalTrans Active Transportation Program grant to fund the East Burnett Street Historical District Pedestrian and Bike Enhancement Project, projected to be completed by July 2027.
