What Are Your City’s Priorities?

Should your city be spending more or less on parks? How about libraries? Police?

These are the types of questions city leaders across Orange County will address this month as they work to adopt their 2014 fiscal year budgets, which residents can directly affect by speaking up at upcoming study sessions and hearings.

As the budget season kicks into high gear this month, we’ll be keeping an eye on the priorities established across our region. We’ve also compiled links to all of the available proposed budgets to help interested residents get into the game.

Budgets are some of the most important documents passed by city councils. They serve as a master spending plan for every city expense from new park space to police salaries to traffic lights.

Many cities hold budget workshops, which give residents a chance to comment on the plans. In most cities, speakers get three minutes each to provide their opinions to council members.

The fiscal year starts July 1 in most cities in Orange County; Huntington Beach operates on an October to September schedule.

Together, the city budgets are expected to amount to several billion dollars in public funds.

Find an interesting spending choice or trend in one of these budgets? Leave a comment below or send us an email.

Aliso Viejo

• FY14 Draft Budget

Anaheim

• FY 14 Proposed Budget
• FY14 Proposed Budget, Supplemental and Line-Item

Brea

• FY 14 Proposed Operating Budget
• FY14 Proposed Capital Improvement Program
• FY14 Successor Agency Budget
• FY14 Brea Public Financing Authority Budget
• FY14 Midbury Assessment Authority Budget

Buena Park

• FY14 Preliminary Revised Budget

Costa Mesa

• FY14 Proposed Budget

Cypress

• FY14 Proposed Budget not yet available.
• FY13 Adopted Budget

Dana Point

• FY14 Proposed Budget

Fountain Valley

• FY14 Proposed Budget not available on the city’s website until late June.
• FY13 Adopted Budget — General Fund
• FY13 Adopted Budget — Other Funds
• FY13 Adopted Budget — Capital Improvement Program

Fullerton

• FY14 Proposed Budget

Garden Grove

• FY14 Proposed Budget will be available June 20, according to city staff.
• FY13 Adopted Budget

Huntington Beach

• FY14 Proposed Budget typically not released until later in summer.
• FY13 Adopted Budget

Irvine

• FY14 Proposed Budget

La Habra

• FY14 Proposed Budget document won’t be online until after it’s approved by the City Council, according to city staff.
• Presentation – FY14 Proposed Budget

La Palma

• FY14 Proposed Budget

Laguna Beach

• FY14 Proposed Budget

Laguna Hills

• FY14 Proposed Budget not yet available.
• FY13 Adopted Budget
• FY13 Adopted Budget — Capital Improvement Program

Laguna Niguel

• FY14 Proposed Budget

Laguna Woods

• Presentation — FY14 Proposed Budget
• Presentation — FY14 Proposed Special Funds Budget

Lake Forest

• FY14 Proposed Operating Budget
• FY14 Proposed Capital Improvement Projects Budget

Los Alamitos

• Staff Report and FY14 Proposed Budget

Mission Viejo

• FY14 Proposed Budget
• FY14 Proposed Budget — Supplemental

Newport Beach

• FY14 Proposed Budget
• FY14 Proposed Capital Improvement Program

Orange

• FY14 Proposed Budget not available until later in June.
• FY13 Adopted Budget

Placentia

• FY14 Draft Preliminary Budget — Part 1
• FY14 Draft Preliminary Budget — Part 2
• FY14 – Draft Preliminary Capital Improvement Program

Rancho Santa Margarita

• FY14 Proposed Budget will be available online on Friday, according to city staff.
• Presentation — FY14 Initial Budget
• Presentation — FY14 Proposed Capital Improvement Program

San Clemente

• FY14 Proposed Budget

San Juan Capistrano

• FY12-14 Adopted Budget
• FY12-14 Adopted Capital Improvement Program Budget

Santa Ana

• FY14 Proposed Budget

Seal Beach

• FY14 Proposed Budget
• FY14 Proposed Capital Improvement Program

Stanton

• FY14 Proposed Budget (Part 1)  (Part 2)
• FY13 Adopted Budget

Tustin

• FY14 Proposed Budget not available until later this week.
• FY13 Adopted Budget
• FY13 Adopted Capital Improvement Program

Villa Park

• FY14 Proposed Budget will be available Wednesday, according to city staff.
• FY13 Final Budget

Westminster

• FY14 Proposed Budget
• FY13 Revised Budget

Yorba Linda

• FY14 Proposed Budget

You can reach Nick Gerda at ngerda@gmail.com, and follow him on Twitter: @nicholasgerda.

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