Council member Stephanie Winstead said Laguna Niguel adopted its first-ever biennial budget for fiscal years 2025–26 and 2026–27, a milestone the council described as improving long‑term planning and operational efficiency. "This past June, the city council proudly accepted the city's first ever biennial budget, a 2 year financial plan for fiscal years 2025 to 2026 and 2026 to 2027," Winstead said.

Winstead said both years of the biennial budget are operationally balanced and that the city continues a long‑standing policy of carrying zero debt. She said more than 90% of the capital improvement program budget in both fiscal years is allocated specifically toward street improvements.

On investments and reserves, Winstead said the city amended its investment policy to include participation in the CAMP investment pool and authorized investments in 10‑year U.S. Treasury securities to prudently lock in favorable returns. She also said the city continues to evaluate investment opportunities to maximize returns while holding conservative principles.

Winstead said Laguna Niguel projects receiving more than $31,000,000 in federal, state and local grant funding over the next five years, covering roughly 42% of capital improvement costs; she presented the figure as a projection and did not provide itemized line‑items in the address.

The council also noted that the city's financial reporting was recognized by the Government Finance Officers Association with the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting.

Discussion: Winstead framed these as achieved milestones and policy updates rather than new proposals requiring a vote during the State of the City address. Direction: continue conservative fiscal management, evaluate investments and pursue grant funding. Decision: the biennial budget and investment policy amendments were described as adopted previously; transcript did not include formal vote details in the address.

Why this matters: adoption of a two‑year budget, a stated zero‑debt posture, investment policy changes and large projected grant receipts influence the city's fiscal capacity to fund capital projects and services.

Officials said the city will continue to pursue grants and prudent investment strategies to sustain services and infrastructure investment.