Last week the Folsom City Council unanimously adopted a $307 million budget for the coming fiscal year. I voted yes. And I want to tell you why and what I am still asking hard questions about.
First, what is genuinely good. For the first time, this council can see five years of actual expenditure data. Real numbers. What things actually cost. Not estimates. Not projections. Actuals. Our city manager deserves real credit for that. So does the Finance Department, who put this budget together with a new level of transparency and rigor. That work matters and it doesn’t go unnoticed. Honest numbers are the foundation of every good decision a city makes, and for too long we were working without them.
That matters more than it sounds. When you don’t know what things actually cost, you can’t make honest tradeoffs. You can’t hold departments accountable. You can’t have a straight conversation with residents about what’s sustainable and what isn’t. Even though they may be uncomfortable, it a relief to be having the conversation.
The decisions that affect your daily life most directly run through the General Fund, a $124 million budget that covers public safety, parks, roads, and city services. That’s where tradeoffs live. That’s where priorities become real.
The General Fund is also where the zoo conversation lives. And given the discussion at this week’s budget meeting I want to address it directly.
Let me be clear. I want the zoo to have a sustainable future. And I believe the only way to get there is through honest conversation about what it actually costs and what the community is actually willing to support. That’s not anti-zoo. That’s pro-Folsom.
Here are the facts. In 2022 the General Fund subsidy for the zoo was $947,000, under a million dollars. The proposed subsidy for 2027 is $1.7 million. That’s nearly double in five years. Over that same period revenue grew by about $66,000. Even with projected revenue increases of another $100,000 to $200,000 the gap narrows but doesn’t close. At $1.7 million annually the subsidy remains nearly double what it was five years ago.
I raise this publicly because I believe residents deserve to be part of this conversation. Not to criticize. But to participate. To respond. To show their support if the zoo is truly a priority.
If you love the zoo, go. Buy a membership. Attend Wild Nights and Holiday Lights. Donate to the Friends of the Folsom Zoo. Every dollar you spend there is a vote for its future.
Folsom residents are smart. They are generous when they believe in something. And they deserve leaders who trust them with honest information rather than protecting them from hard numbers.
That is the kind of leadership I am committed to. Not just on the zoo. On every decision that affects this community. I am grateful to serve District 5 and I look forward to continuing this conversation with you
Anna Rohrbough is the City of Folsom’s Vice Mayor and represents District 5 on Folsom City Council and authored this commentary. She can be reached to discuss issues atannar@folsom.ca.us.
