Auditing Farmington: what the city's own records show about its money

The Utah Ledger is starting a records-only review of Farmington's public finances, beginning with the city's annual comprehensive financial report for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2025, and the fiscal 2027 budget worksheet the city filed with the state. ^[1][2]

Farmington's fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30. The report lists the city's 2025 population as 26,163, citing the U.S. Census Bureau. ^[1]

The audit

Gilbert & Stewart, a Provo accounting firm, audited the fiscal 2025 financial statements and issued an unmodified opinion dated Dec. 17, 2025, saying the statements present fairly, in all material respects, the city's financial position. ^[1]

In its separate report on compliance with state law, the firm reported two instances of noncompliance: the Capital Equipment Capital Projects Fund spent $76,623 more than its budget, and the General Fund's unrestricted balance exceeded the state limit of 35% of the fund's revenue by $16,156. The firm said its compliance opinion was not modified with respect to those matters. ^[3]

Net position and reserves

The city's total net position was $196,047,868 on June 30, 2025: $142,508,720 for governmental activities and $53,539,148 for business-type activities such as the water, storm water and recreation funds. ^[1]

The General Fund ended the year with a fund balance of $6,237,522, of which $6,218,366 was unassigned. The General Fund took in $17,720,599 in revenue that year. ^[4]

Debt

At June 30, 2025, the city reported $3,485,000 in general obligation bonds, issued in 2015 for recreation and park facilities and scheduled to be repaid through 2035, and $156,037 left on 2020 sales and franchise tax refunding bonds, due in fiscal 2026. Its water fund owed $6,559,000 on 2023 water revenue bonds. ^[5]

After the fiscal year ended, the city closed on $6,050,000 in sales and franchise tax revenue bonds on Nov. 11, 2025, to help pay for a new fire station on the city's west side. Those bonds are not included in the June 30, 2025 figures. ^[6]

The fiscal 2027 budget

On Aug. 18, 2026, the City Council voted 5-0 to adopt a tax rate of 0.001581 and, in a second 5-0 vote, the fiscal 2027 final budget, which includes an additional $285,108 of property tax revenue from a 4.99% increase that staff said would pay for three firefighters. ^[7]

The fiscal 2027 budget worksheet the city filed with the state lists General Fund spending of $19,222,879, including $84,793 drawn from fund balance, and $5,987,277 in current-year property tax revenue. ^[2]

Redevelopment

The city's report includes two redevelopment agencies, US 89 and Station Park. In fiscal 2025 they received $649,795 in tax increment and spent $2,292,629, including a $1,473,000 Station Park transfer toward a new park, North Cottonwood Commons. The report says the US 89 area, created in 1990, ended in 2024. ^[8][9]

In this series

The series covers the two state-law findings in the fiscal 2025 audit, the financing of the west-side fire station, the August 2026 property tax increase, the redevelopment money behind North Cottonwood Commons, and the General Fund's support of the recreation fund. ^[3][6][7][9]