Tempe Chief Financial Officer Lisette Camacho and Municipal Budget Director Robert Baer at a work study Nov. 12 presented for the council what is next for the city following the failure of Proposition 424, which would have added a 0.5% sales tax to non-grocery purchases.
The city is in an over $25 million budget deficit. Proposed cuts include deferring the hiring of three firefighters until 2030 and eliminating vacant positions and changes to the Orbit bus route, as the transit fund is in a deficit.
Some councilmembers disagreed on solutions.
“I think a nominal fee may need to be reasonably assessed,” said Vice Mayor Arlene Chin about the Orbit bus service which is currently free to those who use it to get across Tempe.
She explained that while cuts would hurt the city, it would be important for long term control.
The city will vote on a final adoption of the budget on June 3, 2027. Until then, the council will have several meetings that will include public hearings about the budget and city services before voting on a final adoption.
“We’re going to be the ones that go out and the ones that get slammed on Facebook about the Orbit routes and when you do that there are repercussions. It’s real,” Councilmember Nikki Amberg said to Camacho about voting on any budget cuts in the future.
Camacho said the city works with departments to look at individual budgets before asking the council for votes. The Orbit bus costs $15 million to operate annually.
Councilmember Brooke St. George agreed with Amberg and wanted to work with city employees before making major changes.
“I really appreciate your nod to our employees being the subject-matter experts about our city and its services,” St. George said. “Any cuts that are made need to be very surgical so that they do not affect the majority of our residents.”
Mayor Corey Woods said that he was optimistic about the new legislature and would like to see more legislation the would allow cities to tax different areas.
“There are certain services that we just have to provide as a city because other groups simply cannot provide them,” Woods said.
He explained that safety was one of his main priorities and that while he was not looking forward to the changes, he was proud of the work that the staff and council were prepared to do.
“Its going to be a difficult process, but I’m very confident in this team that we will come up with a solution for the new budget in June," he said.
Madeline Bates joined Independent Newsmedia in 2025 as a Phoenix/Tempe reporter. Before graduating college, she spent a semester in Washington as a Congressional reporter in the first 100 days of the second Trump administration. But local news is where her heart is. She is excited to be in Phoenix full time and exploring new parts of the city (as long as they have AC).
Community: After living in East Phoenix for two years, she fell in love with Paradise Valley, Mesa, Tempe, and everywhere in between. She recently discovered the beauty of the South Mountain Reserve and hopes to continue exploring should the weather comply.
Education: Madeline has a degree in Journalism and Mass Communications from Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and a certificate in Political History and Leadership.
Random Fact: She is a self-taught nail tech. No, she cannot do your nails.
Hobbies: Hiking (when its not 100 degrees), fiction writing, cooking, baking and trying new coffee shops.
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