Pacifica Fights $2.3M Budget Gap as Businesses Rally Against Worst-in-Nation Ranking

The Pacifica City Council's May 11 meeting laid bare the financial squeeze facing this coastal city — a $2.3 million structural deficit requiring department-by-department cuts — while also showcasing the fierce community pride that makes Pacifica unlike anywhere else on the Peninsula. More than 30 small businesses launched a creative counteroffensive against a national ranking that branded their city dead last for entrepreneurship, the council pressed SamTrans for real transit commitments before endorsing a half-cent sales tax, and strategic plan updates locked in priorities that will shape every budget dollar this summer.

• $2.3M structural deficit confirmed as departments prepare 5% reduction options ahead of the June 8 budget hearing

• Over 30 businesses launch "Project 1334" with $13.34 specials to reclaim Pacifica's identity after WalletHub ranked it the worst U.S. city to start a small business

• Vice Mayor Wright demands SamTrans name specific Pacifica projects before the council backs a potential half-cent sales tax (SB 63 - Connect Bay Area Act)on the November ballot

• Council adopts 25% tree canopy goal and elevates interim housing solutions in updated strategic plan

• Peninsula Clean Energy rebrands to Westlight Energy after saving Pacifica residents $5.7 million over a decade

The basics: Staff presented the FY 2026-27 base budget — a snapshot of what it costs to maintain current services at next year's prices, not a finished spending plan. General fund revenues of $53.2 million are essentially flat while expenditures hit $57.1 million, a 3.5% jump driven by negotiated salary and benefit increases, rising pension unfunded liability, health insurance, and workers' compensation costs.