Sedona News – The city of Sedona encourages residents to apply for the Citizen Budget Work Group (CBWG) to serve as a citizen sounding board during the upcoming annual budget process.
More specifically, the group of up to nine volunteers will meet at least three times this spring on the following topics:
- City staff will give a high-level explanation of the budget, followed by facilitation of a meaningful discussion in which community members serving on the CBWG provide valuable input about changes to programs and services, and what community issues with budget implications they would like to see addressed.
- City staff will present the preliminary budget for the coming year to the CBWG. This includes base budget requests, projected surpluses available for priority programs and projects, significant capital improvement projects and supplemental budget requests.
- Members of the CBWG will have the opportunity to weigh-in and provide recommendations on the preliminary budget, priorities and supplemental requests before the budget is presented to the City Manager or City Council.
The work of the CBWG culminates with recommendations summarized for the City Manager and City Council that enable them to make more informed decisions when reviewing and considering approval of the Fiscal Year 2026 budget.
Additionally, as part of the budget process, city staff will launch an online survey for all residents to take, which will ask about different community-wide issues that have significant budget implications.
The city invites any city of Sedona resident who is interested in participating in this year’s work group to apply before Jan. 9, 2025, by filling out the volunteer questionnaire found at www.sedonaaz.gov/your-government/departments/city-manager/citizen-engagement/volunteer-questionnaire. Please make sure and check the box on the questionnaire that indicates interest in “Budget Oversight” and share any relevant background information. No previous budget experience is required other than a general interest in the city’s budget process.
For more information, contact the city’s Special Initiatives Coordinator Kegn Moorcroft at kmoorcroft@sedonaaz.gov.