TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
FROM: Jarad Hildenbrand, City Manager
1. SUBJECT
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Initial review of the preliminary 13-Year Financial Sustainability and Investment Strategy
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2. SUMMARY
Staff has developed a preliminary 13-Year Financial Sustainability and Investment Strategy to provide the City Council and community with an initial framework for how additional locally controlled revenues, if approved by Orange voters in November 2026, could be invested to strengthen Orange for the long term.
The preliminary Strategy assumes additional General Fund revenues associated with Measure I, the Public Safety/Essential Services Measure, and Measure J, the Hotel Tax Modification Measure. This assumption is for planning purposes and does not advocate for or against either measure. The decision on Measures I and J belongs to Orange voters.
Informed by Rebuild Orange: Local Control and Accountability, the Strategy is organized around four long-term priorities:
Strengthen Orange’s Finances
Protect Public Safety and Essential Services
Repair, Maintain and Beautify Orange
Grow Orange’s Economy
The Strategy is not a fixed 13-year budget. It establishes the priorities, financial discipline, accountability, and outcomes intended to guide the City over the 13-year period, while individual investments would be evaluated and authorized through future public budget and appropriation processes. Financial conditions, professional assessments, organizational capacity, project readiness, and community needs would inform those decisions over time.
Measure I is temporary, making long-term sustainability fundamental to the Strategy. The objective is to use the 13-year period, if approved by voters, to strengthen the City’s finances, protect essential services, reinvest in aging infrastructure and facilities, strengthen the local economy, and leave Orange better positioned to sustain those investments after the temporary revenue expires.
Staff is seeking C...
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