Orem's utilities budgeted $1.07 million to return to the general fund in fiscal 2027
The general fund pays Orem's water, sewer, storm water and street light funds for city use, and the same $1,072,000 is planned to go back by transfer. Separate charges for administration and internal services appear in the same presentation.
Continuing story: Auditing Orem
Orem plans to move $1,072,000 from its four utility funds to its general fund in fiscal 2027, according to the city's enterprise fund transfer presentation. [1]
The presentation lists $900,000 from the water fund, $16,000 from water reclamation, $141,000 from storm water and $15,000 from street lighting. [1] It lists the water amount as covering parks, the cemetery and internal building use. [1]
Why the money moves
The presentation says city properties use water, sewer, storm drainage and street lighting, and that "The State Auditor requires Cities to charge themselves the retail rate of these services" and pay for them from the general fund. [1]
It says the city chose transfers over raising taxes or cutting services, and that "Through a transfer the same amount of money is sent back to the General Fund." [1]
The city's transfer notice, issued under Utah Code 10-6-135.5, says, "Neither fund has a net increase or decrease," and that "These amounts will not be repaid." [2] It says a public hearing on the fiscal 2026-2027 budget was held June 9, 2026. [2]
Size of the transfers
The presentation lists each transfer as a share of the utility's spending: 3.71% for water, 0.08% for water reclamation, 1.75% for storm water and 0.89% for street lighting. [1]
It budgets total spending of $24,242,000 for water, $20,610,000 for water reclamation, $8,080,000 for storm water and $1,694,000 for street lighting. [1]
Separate service charges
A separate slide lists charges to the utilities for administration, purchasing, information technology, insurance, fleet maintenance and facilities maintenance. [1] They total $2,299,488 for water, $1,577,782 for water reclamation, $685,688 for storm water and $128,569 for street lighting. [1]
The facilities maintenance charges are $264,150 for water, $160,966 for water reclamation, $83,391 for storm water and $1,448 for street lighting. [1] These are charges for services, listed separately from the $1,072,000 in transfers. [1]
The council voted on Aug. 27, 2026, to adopt the final fiscal 2027 budget, according to the city's citizens' budget. [3] The records reviewed do not show the transfers being posted.
These are budgeted amounts for fiscal 2027, which runs July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027, not a record of payments. The transfers and the service charges are different categories and are not combined in this story.
Sources
- City of Orem · FY2027 enterprise fund transfer presentation
- City of Orem · FY2026-2027 utility fund transfer notice
- City of Orem · FY2027 citizens' budget
Reporting by The Utah Ledger from the public records above. AI-assisted, checked against those records.