Local news- Press Release
Durham North Carolina - Durham s Proposed Budget Funds Employee Compensation Public Safety Shared Prosperity Initiatives 16 May 2022 ( news )
Durham , state North Carolina ( By Press Release office)
May 16,2022
| 13| 2
Proposed Property Tax Rate Increase of 0 . 6
Cent
City Manager Wanda Page presented her
proposed FY202
2
- 202
3
budget
at the May 16 City Council meeting , which contains a property tax rate increase to
help support the
restoration
of
merit - based
employee compensation as well as public safety and shared prosperity initiatives .
Page’s recommended total preliminary budget is
$568 . 9
million , which is a
7
.
4
% increase from last year’s adopted budget , primarily due to
increases in the General Fund , Water and Sewer and Stormwater Fund
s
for infrastructure improvements , and the Debt Service Fund to provide for capital infrastructure .
Proposed Tax Rate Increase:
Page recommended a proposed property tax rate of 55 .
7
7 cents per $100 of assessed value , which is a
0 . 6
cent tax rate increase from the previous fiscal year
’s rate of 55 . 17 cents .
If approved by the City Council next month , t
he proposed tax rate
will
generate a City of Durham property tax bill of about $1 , 311 per year , or about $109 per month , on a house valued at the median house value of $235 , 133 according to the Durham County Office of Tax Administration .
City Employee Compensation:
According to Page , the additional funds from the tax rate increase
will be used to
help
provide City employees
classified as
general
employees with
a 3% market -
rate salary increase as well as
restoration
of the City’s pay - for - performance merit system
for all employees , both general and sworn
.
Police and Fire sworn employees received
market -
rate
salary
increases of
15%
and
14 . 7
% , respectively , in January 2022 .
For the past two years , merit - based salary increases have
been
suspended
for all employees
due to the
continued
financial uncertainty related to the
global
COVID - 19 pandemic .
“
When I think about the past
two
year
s
and
everything we’ve been through as a community and a country ,
I feel such gratitude for our employees and their continued
public
service
, ” Page said . “
During a time , cited by many as the ‘Great Resignation , ’ our employees continued to perform their duties and showed up
each and every day for our city
even though they had not received merit - based pay raises for two years
.
It’s time we recognized their continued service and reward them for a job well done
by
restoring
our merit - based pay system
,
which
was designed to annually
reward
employees based on the quality of their
job performance
.
”
Public Safety:
Page also
recommended funding to begin implementation of new pilot programs in the
Community Safety Department
, specifically the
Crisis Call Diversion , Co - Response , Care Navigation
, and
Community Response T
eam pilots . Funding is also included to continue the
Durham Expunction
and Restoration ( DEAR ) Program as well as a one - year pilot of the ShotSpotter technology .
Affordable Housing:
Page also shared more about
the results - to - date of
‘
Forever Home , Durham
, ’
the City’s $160 million program to create affordable opportunit
ies for renters and homeowners . To date , this program has created
662 rental units
, preserved 261 rental units , and provided n
early 1 , 300 households
with
assistance to stay in their homes
. Page also noted that her proposed budget includes $500 , 000 to support the Durham County Long - Time Homeowner Grant Program for residents at or below
80
% of the area median income . This program award
s
grants to qualifying recipients to help reduce the amount of their property taxes due .
Digital Inclusion:
Page’s proposed spending plan also includes funding for a new Digital Inclusion Program
Manager to begin work
ing with community partners
on program
s
to ensure
all
City residents
have access to
the
internet
and understand how to use
this
technology
in areas such as education , health care , and
employment
opportunities .
Youth Career Exploration & Business Support Programs:
Funding is also included
to
support
paid summer
youth
ca
reer explor
ation
,
pathway discovery , and ready
-
to
-
work programs;
local businesses through the
Momentum 360 Financial Academy Training Program ,
which provides
coaching , mento
ring and training for
businesses in recovery from t
he impact of COVID - 10 shutdowns; and
Hispanic Ecosystem and Outreach Program aimed at developing a marketing , outreach
,
and technical assistance program that specifically targets Hispanic entrepreneurs
; and
continu
ing the Durham L
egacy
B
usiness
Program
which helps
to retain , expand
,
and transition Durham ' s long - standing small , women
- and minority -
owned businesses
with
succession planning and targeted technical assistance .
COVID - 19:
Page also focused her attention on the organization’s
continued
COVID - 19 recovery efforts , citing
how
f
ederal funds will
be allocated
to
continue providing
fare - free service for all
GoDurham riders
in the coming fiscal year
.
Street Maintenance:
Since street paving and maintenance continues to be a significant concern for residents responding to the
202
1
Resident Satisfaction Survey
, the proposed budget maintains funding for street paving at $10 million .
Water System Rehabilitation:
The City will invest $
102 . 2
million
for
water system
rehabilitation ,
upgrading and increasing the City’s
future water supply
through
Jordan Lake
and
Teer Quarry projects
as well as
Lake Michie
and
Little River construction
needs .
A modest increase of about 3 .
9
% in water and sewer rates as well as a stormwater rate increase of
0 . 93
cents per month are also included in the proposed budget .
Review the Proposed Budget
To dive into the details , review the
entire proposed budget ( PDF )
For a summary , check out the
presentation slides ( PDF )
or watch the
presentation to City Council on YouTube
For a two - minute recap , check out our
Bull City Today episode highlighting the proposed budget
Learn more about the entire
budget development process budget
Next Steps in the Budget Approval Process
City Council and
City
staff will review the
proposed budget details at
budget work sessions on May 2
5
and May 2
6
. These
in - person
work sessio
ns will begin at 9 a . m . in City Hall’s Council Chambers and be livestreamed to the City’s
YouTube channel
as well as
Durham Television Network
to enable as many
residents
as possible to watch
the
departmental budget presentations .
A
public hearing
is scheduled for the proposed budget
on
Monday , June
6
at 7 p . m . with final budget approval set for
Tuesday , June 21
at 7 p . m .
PLAY the NEWS
* May be useful for visually impaired persons .
Press release information :
Direct link to press release:
Click here .
