Longmont council votes 6-1 to remove cap on housing-fund administrative spending

Longmont City Council voted 6-1 on Sept. 1 to remove a locally imposed 20% cap on administrative spending from the city’s affordable and attainable housing funds. Councilmember Jake Marcine opposed the change.

Staff projected that administrative spending would reach about 24% of the relevant housing funds’ spending in 2027, even without changes to staffing benchmarks or planned spending. The record does not provide a spending base for calculating the difference in dollars.

The cap was created locally in the 1990s and modeled on administrative limits used by federal Community Development Block Grant and HOME programs, staff said. The projection reflects increased reporting requirements, outside funding sources that do not allow administrative costs to be charged to grants and the need to offer a competitive salary for a vacant housing investment manager position.

Staff described the change as a way to measure and pay for administrative work, not an automatic authorization for a new position or a specific spending increase. The city does not expect to request additional housing-program capacity in 2027, staff said. Instead, the near-term effect would be a redistribution of existing capacity as the program handles redevelopment and other work.

Removing the cap could leave fewer dollars available for housing projects, although staff and council members said the difference could be small. The record does not establish how much project funding would be affected. Staff said the change would not reduce outside funding dedicated to community benefits and would eliminate an ongoing $206,543 general-fund contribution associated with the cap.

Controls remain

The housing funds remain restricted to their designated purposes under the City Charter’s fund-management principles. Removing the cap does not allow the money to be used for unrelated city operations.

Council also retains authority over future capacity increases through the regular budget process. Any additional staffing or major expansion would return to the council for approval, staff said. The department has reduced discretionary spending by 30% while trying to remain below the cap, according to staff.

The vote occurred as the city develops its proposed 2027 budget. Staff proposed moving final budget adoption from October to November so the city can account for the results of a Nov. 3 public-safety tax ballot question, if necessary. The budget remains under review; the council’s vote on the housing-fund cap was the action taken Sept. 1.