While City Council is on summer hiatus until July 14, staff have released an agenda for the Council Finance Committee meeting scheduled for July 9, 2026, in which the police budget and photo radar revenue take center stage. Fort Collins officials are preparing for a 2027 budget cycle shaped by rising public safety costs and recalibrated revenue expectations. Police Services expects to request $74.2 million in 2027, a $4.2 million increase over 2026, largely to maintain current service levels amid higher labor, benefits, equipment and technology costs. Meanwhile, the city’s photo radar and red-light program remained slightly revenue-positive in 2025 but fell well short of revenue projections, prompting staff to revisit forecasting assumptions, vendor accountability and program costs during the 2027–2028 budget process. Also published in the mail-packet is Fort Collins’ first look at the draft citywide program inventory, which is designed to make the budget easier to understand by showing what each program does, who it serves, how much it costs and where its funding comes from.
This Week’s Updates
Fort Collins Police Expected to Request Additional $4.2M Over 2026 Budget to Maintain Current Service Levels in 2027
To maintain the current level of service, FCPS anticipates requesting $74.2 million in 2027, a $4.2 million increase from 2026. The forecast assumes 2026 actual salaries with a 2% increase for eligible staff, 3% annual merit increases in 2027/2028, 5.5% annual benefits growth, continuation of 2025/2026 reductions, and a 2% inflationary increase for other expenses.
Per FCPS, the main 2027 cost drivers are:
- Collective bargaining agreement costs, including officers, sergeants, lieutenants, community service officers, supervisors, dispatchers and managers.
- Inflationary pressures on services, contracts and supplies.
- Replacement of outdated equipment, including handheld and vehicle radios and computer equipment.
- AXON technology updates, including body-worn cameras, Tasers and drones.
2026 Budget by Division
| Division | 2026 Budget | Community Role |
| Patrol | $25.1M | 24/7 response, first-response policing, collisions, crime calls, service requests and quality-of-life issues. |
| Special Operations | $14.6M | Traffic, mental health response, District One/Old Town, SROs, K9, HOPE, SWAT, emergency management, drones and hazardous devices. |
| Information Services | $11.2M | 911 dispatch, records, technical projects and police IT support. |
| Criminal Investigations | $11.0M | Major crimes, drug task force, property crimes, cybercrimes, victim services, forensics and evidence. |
| Administration | $8.0M | Command, professional standards, training, internal affairs, budget/finance, crime analysis, accreditation and policy management. |
Patrol has the largest staffing footprint, with 127 authorized FTE covering 24/7 operations and responding to more than 84,000 police incidents annually. Special Operations includes 80 staff members, while Criminal Investigations includes 67 sworn and professional staff, and Information Services includes 68 professional staff assigned to dispatch, records and technical support.
The police budget section frames the 2027 request not as a major service expansion, but as the cost of maintaining current service levels amid labor-cost growth, benefits increases, inflation, equipment replacement and technology obligations. The largest budget area remains Patrol, while the department is emphasizing civilianization, specialized response teams and technology as ways to manage workload and control future costs.
Tag(s): Fort Collins Police Services; Fort Collins Budget; 2027 Budget.
Source(s): Agenda – Mail Packet – 07/07/2026 – City Council Finance Committee Agenda – July 9, 2026: Agenda – Mail Packet – 07/07/2026 – City Council Finance Committee Agenda – July 9, 2026
Photo Radar Revenue Falls Short as Drivers Adjust to Expanded Enforcement
Fort Collins’ camera radar and red-light program is continuing to show signs of changing driver behavior, and city staff say the program’s revenue has fallen well short of earlier projections following its recent expansion.
In 2025, the program brought in about $2.85 million in revenue against $2.7 million in operating expenses, leaving a modest operating margin of about $140,000. But that revenue was far below the $5.2 million budgeted for the year, prompting staff to revisit assumptions used to forecast revenue from the expanded program.
Staff identified several causes for the shortfall. One major issue was that projections relied too heavily on activity at Prospect and Shields, one of the city’s highest-volume enforcement locations. That intersection accounted for 54% of fixed-speed citations and 42% of red-light citations, even though it represented only a fraction of the overall system. Applying that level of activity across other corridors inflated expected revenue by an estimated $1 million to $1.5 million.
The city also saw lower revenue because transportable camera units were deployed later than expected. Staff estimated the delay may have cost the program 13,000 to 15,000 citations, or more than $500,000 in potential revenue.
Another factor was faster-than-expected driver behavior change. Fixed-speed cameras issued 37,428 citations in 2025, but year-to-date 2026 data showed citations falling sharply at most locations, with five of six intersections down by double-digit percentages. Staff said that suggests drivers are adapting to the expanded enforcement system, particularly at intersections where red-light cameras were already familiar.
As part of the 2027–2028 budget process, the city plans to review program revenues and expenses, improve forecasting methods, strengthen vendor contract requirements and evaluate whether to pursue a new automated enforcement provider in 2027. Staff said they expect program revenue to cover most future expenses but acknowledged that both revenue and costs remain uncertain.
Photo Radar Key Performance Metrics
| Program Area | Key Performance Metric | Reported Result / Trend | Why it Matters |
| Overall program | Years in operation | Program began in 1997 and has operated for about 28 years. | Establishes long-term context for safety and revenue trends. |
| Program assets | Enforcement equipment | 6 fixed speed/red-light camera intersections, 4 mobile enforcement vehicles, and 2 transportable speed camera units. | Shows the scale of the current enforcement system. |
| Mobile camera radar | Vehicles monitored | More than 15 million vehicles monitored since inception. | Demonstrates the program’s reach over time. |
| Mobile camera radar | Citations issued | More than 371,000 citations issued since the program began. | Shows long-term enforcement volume. |
| Mobile camera radar | Violation rate | Less than 3% of detected vehicles now result in a violation, compared with about 7% at inception. | Staff frames this as evidence of improved driver compliance. |
| Mobile camera radar | Citation issue rate | Citation issue rate rose from 58% in 1998–2002 to 89% in 2021–2025. | Suggests fewer unusable violation captures and better program efficiency. |
| Red-light cameras | 2025 citations | 12,668 red-light citations issued in 2025. | Provides recent annual enforcement volume. |
| Red-light cameras | Five-year concentration | Prospect and Shields accounted for 42% of red-light citations over the last five years. | Shows one intersection heavily skews program wide results. |
| Red-light cameras | Trend | Citations are trending downward at all red-light camera locations. | Staff interprets this as improved driver behavior. |
| Fixed speed cameras | 2025 citations | 37,428 fixed-speed citations issued in 2025. | Shows major impact from newly activated fixed-speed enforcement. |
| Fixed speed cameras | Location concentration | Prospect and Shields accounted for 54% of fixed-speed citations. | This outlier contributed to inflated revenue forecasts when applied citywide. |
| Fixed speed cameras | 2026 trend | Through May 2026, five of six fixed-speed locations were down 46% to 77% compared with 2025. | Indicates drivers adjusted quickly after camera activation. |
| Transportable cameras | Citations issued | 15,066 citations issued from July 2025 through May 2026. | Shows early performance from movable camera units. |
| Transportable cameras | Trend clarity | No clear trend yet because units move between locations. | Makes revenue and safety forecasting harder. |
| Transportable cameras | Operational issue | Performance has been affected by vandalism, spray-painting and tampering. | Explains why some violations may not translate into citations or revenue. |
| Financial performance | 2025 revenue | Program collected about $2.85 million in 2025. | Key measure of actual revenue after expansion. |
| Financial performance | 2025 expenses | Program had about $2.7 million in operating expenses. | Shows the program still covered operating costs in 2025. |
| Financial performance | 2025 margin | About $140,000 operating margin, or roughly 5%. | Indicates the program was positive but much tighter than projected. |
| Forecast accuracy | 2025 revenue budget vs. actual | Budgeted revenue was $5.2 million, while actual revenue was about $2.85 million. | Captures the core revenue shortfall. |
| Forecast accuracy | Estimated over-forecast from Prospect/Shields assumptions | Staff estimated the use of high-volume Prospect/Shields data inflated projections by $1.0M to $1.5M. | Identifies a major cause of the forecasting miss. |
| Forecast accuracy | Delayed transportable deployment impact | Delay may have cost 13,000 to 15,000 citations, or $500,000+ in potential revenue. | Quantifies the effect of slower rollout. |
| Citation conversion | Dismissal rate | Citation dismissal rate is estimated at 8% to 10%. | Important variable for future revenue forecasts. |
Tag(s): Photo Radar Enforcement; Fort Collins Budget; Vision Zero.
Source(s): Agenda – Mail Packet – 07/07/2026 – City Council Finance Committee Agenda – July 9, 2026: Agenda – Mail Packet – 07/07/2026 – City Council Finance Committee Agenda – July 9, 2026
Council Mail Packet Includes Draft Program Inventory to Show Where Public Dollars Go
Fort Collins is creating its first consolidated citywide inventory of programs and services, a new budget tool intended to make it easier for City Council and the public to see what the city funds, how programs are staffed and which revenue sources support them.
The draft inventory is part of the city’s transition away from the former Budgeting for Outcomes model. Instead of presenting budget information only at a higher departmental or service-area level, the new inventory compiles program-level information submitted by each service area as part of the city’s biennial budget development process.
According to the memo, the goal is to provide “a clearer, more comprehensive picture” of the programs and services Fort Collins delivers and how public resources are allocated across those activities. Staff said the standardized citywide format is intended to improve transparency, support strategic decision-making and help residents better understand how taxpayer and ratepayer dollars are invested.
The draft uses the 2026 Adopted Budget as its baseline. For each program, the inventory lists information such as the service area, department, program name, total 2026 budget, General Fund budget, full-time equivalent staffing, program purpose, who the program serves, performance measures, funding sources and whether the funding is restricted.
The draft notes that mandate information is still pending review, and the memo says additional quality assurance and validation work will be completed before the final inventory is published
Tag(s): Fort Collins Budget; Program Inventory.
Source(s): Memo – Mail Packet – 07/07/2026 – Memorandum from Caleb Weitz and Victoria Shaw re Draft 2026 Consolidated Program Inventory – Informational: Memo – Mail Packet – 07/07/2026 – Memorandum from Caleb Weitz and Victoria Shaw re Draft 2026 Consolidated Program Inventory – Informational
Fort Collins Report is a nonprofit local news organization focused on public-service and accountability journalism in Fort Collins. Its reporting centers community impact, civic transparency, and accessible coverage of the institutions and decisions that shape local life. If you value this reporting, consider donating to us at fcreport.org/donate.