West Jordan's development fee fund was $305,827 in the red at the end of March 2026
An unaudited quarterly report shows West Jordan's Development Services Fund spent more than it took in from July 2025 through March 2026. The adopted fiscal 2027 budget says the General Fund is covering the fiscal 2026 deficit and budgets another transfer this year.
Continuing story: Auditing West Jordan
West Jordan's Development Services Fund, which holds permit and other development fees, had a negative balance of $305,827 at March 31, 2026, according to the city's third-quarter financial report for fiscal 2026. The report is unaudited and was restated on July 6, 2026. [1]
The fund started the fiscal year with $260,257. From July 2025 through March 2026 it took in $3,567,571 and spent $4,133,655. [1]
What the fund pays for
The report says the fund was created after legislative discussion about keeping development fees separate, so that the fees pay only for development-related work, and that fiscal 2026 is its first full year. Its revenue is development fees, not counting impact fees. It pays for the planning and building departments and a share of services such as engineering, GIS and administration, which the General Fund allocates by percentage of services. [1]
Through March, those shared services cost the fund $1,781,697, the largest single expense line. Planning and building personnel and operations made up the rest. [1]
Compared with a year earlier
Licensing and permit revenue was $3,098,087 through March 2026, compared with $3,410,994 in the same months a year earlier. Total spending was $4,133,655, compared with $3,846,371. [1]
The fund's annual budget in the report anticipated $4,461,000 in revenue and $5,743,311 in spending, which would end the year with a negative balance of $1,022,054. [1]
The General Fund's role
The adopted fiscal 2027 budget says that in years when fee revenue does not cover costs, the General Fund provides a temporary subsidy through a transfer. It says that is the case for fiscal 2026, with a transfer to cover the estimated deficit, and that another transfer is budgeted for fiscal 2027 to keep a minimal fund balance. [2]
The budget estimates the fund ended fiscal 2026 with $7,193 and budgets an ending balance of $88,445 for fiscal 2027. These are estimates and plans; the audited results for fiscal 2026 have not yet been published. [2][3]
The $305,827 is an unaudited balance at March 31, 2026, not the fund's current balance. A negative fund balance is an accounting measure, not an overdrawn bank account.
Sources
- West Jordan City · FY2026 Quarter 3 financial report (restated July 6, 2026)
- West Jordan City · FY2027 Annual Budget, adopted Aug. 25, 2026 (fund balances)
- West Jordan City · Financial reports index
Reporting by The Utah Ledger from the public records above. AI-assisted, checked against those records.