Pay raises, street safety, tax increases. Here’s a look at Durham’s 2026 budget
.JPG "As of January 2025, the City of Durham has grown to about 317,467 residents.")
As the city of Durham grows to over 317,400 residents, there is a new emphasis on increasing funding in several key areas that impact daily life.
On Monday night, City Manager Bo Ferguson previewed his $772 million budget proposal for fiscal year 2026 at the city council meeting, his first presentation after taking over the position in January.
The budget is $53.9 million, or 8%, more than the current year’s budget and includes a proposed tax rate of 43.71 cents per $100 of assessed property value.
The proposal also includes raises for employees; hiring new workers, including several for public safety efforts; and maintaining fare-free bus service.
“It’s no surprise to anyone here to hear that Durham continues to grow, and with that growth comes greater demand for city services,” Ferguson said at the meeting. “We’ve heard loud and clear from our residents you want continued investments in public safety, in equitable infrastructure and quality of life.”
What are the key highlights?
All city employees will get a pay raise. Ferguson proposes raising the minimum wage from $19.58 to $21.90 an hour. That’s the equivalent of a yearly salary of $45,560.
This will be a bump up for entry-level and lower-wage full-time employees and marks the largest raise in city wages in the last six years, Ferguson said.
He proposes that all general employees get a 4% to 6% performance raise and that all sworn police and fire employees get a 5% step plan raise.
Additionally, Ferguson proposes 42 new employees next year with 17 going to community safety. Those positions include several new staff members for HEART, the city’s crisis response program that handles non-violent 911 calls.
Ferguson said the new HEART positions, including nine crisis responders, crisis clinicians, street outreach workers and administrative staff, will help expand the program’s operations to respond to more daily phone calls that are often missed.
Other departments getting new positions are Parks and Recreation, Transportation, Environmental and Street Services, Fire, Building & Safety, the City Attorney’s office and Budget & Management.
Ferguson also proposes:
Keeping all GoDurham buses free through the end of June 2026
$7 million for lead soil cleanup to open five city parks: East Durham, East End, Lyon, Northgate and Walltown
$43 million for construction of the Aquatic Center at Merrick-Moore Park
Expansions to the city’s pavement and sidewalk repair programs, including $1.2 million for the design of a two-way street on North Mangum and North Roxboro streets
“I know that maybe we didn’t get every single thing we wanted, but it’s pretty damn close,” council member Chelsea Cook said.
Mayor Leo Williams said the budget won’t “make everybody happy, it won’t make everybody sad.”
“But considering the competing interests and the priorities that we do not have a choice but to address … we have work to do.” he said.
What is Durham’s proposed tax rate?
Ferguson proposes a tax rate of 43.71 cents per $100 of assessed property value. This number is based on the city’s revenue-neutral tax rate of 38.23 cents.
“Revenue-neutral” refers to the rate needed to generate the same amount of property tax revenue with new, higher tax values. Durham County conducted property tax revaluations this year, and every property owner saw new, higher values. Across the board, property values increased by 71% in Durham after the revaluation, Ferguson said.
“This rate allows us to invest in the services and infrastructure that our community has asked for,” Ferguson said. About two pennies of the proposed rate also helps support the debt payments for the $200 million bond that Durham voters approved in November.
What does this mean for a typical homeowner?
Claudia Hager, Durham County’s manager, presented her $1 billion budget recommendation on May 12. She proposes a tax rate of 55.42 cents per $100 of assessed property value.
Here’s an example of how a Durham homeowner may be affected:
- Before the revaluation, the owner of a home valued at $250,000 had a City of Durham property tax bill of about $1,498 based on the current rate of 59.92 cents.
- Now, if that home’s value increased to $415,000, that owner would get a city tax bill of $1,814.
- Added to the county’s proposed rate, that homeowner would be looking at a combined property tax bill of $4,114.
“We’re focused on being fair, strategic and responsive,” Ferguson said. “Every dollar in this proposal has an important purpose.”
How can residents provide feedback?
The City Council will hold two work sessions on the budget on May 28 and May 29 at 9 a.m. Residents can attend the meetings or watch virtually.
Additionally, there is a public hearing scheduled for a Durham City Council meeting on June 2 at 7 p.m.
The city is set to adopt the budget on June 16, and the budget will take effect on July 1.
For more information go to durhamnc.gov.
This story was originally published May 20, 2025 at 7:00 AM.