Juneau draft budget includes reduced spending, increased user fees

Published 1:10 pm Monday, April 13, 2026

Juneau residents are invited to provide comments and ask questions about the draft 2027 fiscal budget at a meeting Wednesday, April 15.

Juneau is facing a budget shortfall due to lower-than-projected consumer spending and recently implemented sales-tax exemptions.

Because of that, the 2027 fiscal budget aims to reduce spending by $3.9 million through budget assumptions, but without reducing services for residents. It also reduces spending on capital improvement projects by $17 million, while focusing on the maintenance of current facilities and existing structures.

The budget is implementing $2.3 million in increased user fees to better match operational expenses and industry standards.

The budget is also drawing $10.3 million from the City and Borough of Juneau reserves: $7.7 million will be to close the operating budget gap and another $2.6 million will be for one-time expenses.

“The Assembly is now tasked with difficult decisions on how to approach this deficit, including reducing ongoing operating costs by implementing city service reductions,” a Facebook post from the City and Borough of Juneau says.

The City and Borough of Juneau says input from residents can help the assembly decide how to move forward with the shortfall.

The meeting is Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. in the assembly chambers at city hall (155 Heritage Way), but residents can also tune in through Zoom.

The agenda and how to participate in the meeting can be found at juneauak.portal.civicclerk.com/event/4937/files/agenda/12473.