Title
Fiscal Year (FY) 2026/27 Proposed Operating Budget and Interagency Cost-Sharing Agreement for the Water Forum
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FileID
File ID: 2026-01075
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Location
Location: Citywide
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Recommendation
Recommendation: Pass a Motion: 1) approving the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026/27 Proposed Operating Budget for the Water Forum; 2) authorizing the City Manager or designee to execute an annual interagency cost share agreement for the Water Forum Successor Effort (WFSE) and Habitat Management Element (HME), with the El Dorado Irrigation District, Placer County Water Agency, City of Folsom (minus Ashland), City of Roseville, San Juan Water District, Citrus Heights Water District, Fair Oaks Water District, Carmichael Water District, Sacramento Suburban Water District, Golden State Water Company, California American Water Company, Sacramento County Water Agency, and East Bay Municipal Utility District; and 3) authorizing the City Manager or designee to execute an annual interagency cost share agreement for WFSE with Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency (SAFCA).
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Contact
Contact: Ashlee Casey, Executive Director, (916) 808-1995, acasey@waterforum.org; Emily Lee, Administrative Analyst, (916) 808-1993, elee@waterforum.org; Water Forum; Kelly Sherfey, Supervising Financial Analyst, (916) 808-1466, ksherfey@cityofsacramento.org, Department of Utilities
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Presenter
Presenter: None
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Attachments
Attachments:
1-Description/Analysis
2-Exhibit A - Water Forum Annual Budget Overview
3-WFSE/HME Interagency Cost Share Agreement
4-WFSE Interagency Cost Share Agreement with SAFCA
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Description/Analysis
IssueDetail
Issue Detail: The FY2026/27 proposed operating budget for the Water Forum includes estimated revenue, program support transfers, and expenditures necessary to maintain staffing levels and funding for the Water Forum programs and service commitments in FY2026/27. Service commitments include work on the Lower American River (LAR) Flow Management Standard, the American River Climate Adaptation Program (ARCAP), habitat enhancement projects, and science, monitoring, and decision support as essential commitments of the Water Forum 2050 Agreement (WF2050).
Under the current Interagency Agreement (C2001-005) governing operations of
the Water Forum, funding for the WFSE and HME is provided by water suppliers who are signatories to the WFA.
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PolicyConsiderations
Policy Considerations: This recommendation is consistent with the Mayor and City Council’s mission to protect, preserve, and enhance the quality of life for present and future generations.
The WF2050 approved in 2026, includes a mechanism for funding the Water Forum to ensure actual implementation of Agreement through the year 2050. The Water Forum was historically administered under the auspices of the Sacramento City-County Office of Metropolitan Water Planning (CCOMWP). The Water Forum continues the interest-based collaborative process successfully used to develop the original Water Forum Agreement.
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EconomicImpacts
Economic Impacts: None.
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EnvironmentalConsiderations
Environmental Considerations: Continuing administrative activities and government fiscal activities do not constitute a project and are therefore exempt from CEQA review (CEQA Guidelines § 15378(b)(2) and (b)(4)).
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Sustainability
Sustainability: Approval of the FY2026/27 Proposed Operating Budget and approval of the FY2026/27 WFSE and HME Cost Share for the Water Forum is consistent with the following City of Sacramento’s 2040 General Plan Goals.
Environmental Resource Constraints Goal 1 - Responsible management of water resources that preserves and enhances water quality and availability.
Environmental Resource Constraints Goal 2.1 - Conservation of Water Resources in Open Space Areas. The City shall continue to preserve, protect, and provide appropriate access to designated open space areas along the American and Sacramento Rivers, floodways, and undevelopable floodplains, provided access would not disturb sensitive habitats or species, and shall support efforts to conserve and, where feasible, create or restore areas that provide important water quality and habitat benefits such as creeks, riparian corridors, buffer zones, wetlands, open space areas, levees, and drainage canals for the purpose of protecting water resources and habitats in the city’s watersheds, creeks, and the Sacramento and American Rivers.
Environmental Resource Constraints Goal 2.12 - Support Habitat Conservation Plan Efforts. The City shall encourage and support regional habitat conservation planning efforts to conserve and manage habitat for special status species. New or amended Habitat Conservation Plans should provide a robust adaptive management component sufficient to ensure that habitat preserves are resilient to climate change effects/impacts and to ensure their mitigation value over time. Provisions should include but are not limited to: greater habitat ranges and diversity; corridors and transition zones to accommodate retreat or spatial shifts in natural areas; redundant water supply; elevated topography to accommodate extreme flooding; and flexible management and fee structure.
Environmental Resource Constraints Goal 2.14 - Climate Change-related Habitat Restoration and Enhancement. The City shall support active habitat restoration and enhancement to reduce impact of climate change stressors and improve overall resilience of habitat within existing parks and open space in the city. The City shall support the efforts of Sacramento County to improve the resilience of habitat areas in the American River Parkway
Environmental Resource Constraints Goal 6 - Protection of life and property from flooding hazards.
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Commission/Committee Action
Commission/Committee Action: The proposed budget was reviewed and approved by the Water Forum Coordinating Committee in January 2026, and by the Water Forum Plenary in February 2026.
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RationaleforRecommendation
Rationale for Recommendation: Approval of the FY2026/27 proposed operating budget, interagency agreement, and SAFCA agreement will enable the Water Forum to continue its services and projects related to regional water resource issues, including implementation of the ARCAP, completion of the LAR Flow Management Standard, regional assistance on water reliability initiatives, and construction of important habitat on the LAR. These activities have been deemed essential to maintaining the LAR as a functioning ecosystem and preserving the American River Parkway’s reputation as the jewel of the Sacramento Region. These ongoing activities, under the guidance of the Water Forum have gained regional, state-wide, and national recognition and have helped to define Sacramento as a leader in water management, open space preservation, and ecological stewardship.
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FinancialConsiderations
Financial Considerations: The proposed operating budget for FY2026/27 is $2,057,076 in revenue and $2,182,076 in expenditures for the WFSE Fund (7103) and the HME Fund (7104). The details of revenue and expenditure budgets for both funds are outlined in Exhibit A.
The approved operating budget will be included and allocated through the citywide budget process.
There are no General Funds allocated or planned for this agreement.
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LocalBusinessEnterprise
Local Business Enterprise (LBE): Not applicable.
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