Fayetteville City Council adopts fiscal year 2025 budget

By Staff Report, posted Jun 25, 2024 on BizFayetteville.com

The City of Fayetteville adopted the fiscal year 2025 budget, totaling $320.9 million. Councilmembers unanimously voted to adopt the budget during a Regular Council meeting held on June 24.

The FY 2025 budget represents a 3.01% increase over the previous fiscal year and includes critical investments aimed at enhancing community services, ensuring fiscal sustainability and addressing key priorities identified by both the City Council and residents.

"Working through the budget process this year has been a testament to our commitment to the residents and employees of Fayetteville,” said City Manager Doug Hewett in a press release. “I'm proud of the collaborative efforts of our City Council and staff to ensure that we provide the best possible outcomes. Together, we have crafted a budget that not only addresses our immediate needs but also sets a strong foundation for future growth and prosperity.”

These allocations demonstrate the City's commitment to enhancing public safety and community well-being through targeted investments.

Ad Valorem Tax Rate Increase: 100% of the $0.04 ad valorem increase is dedicated to public safety personnel, ensuring competitive compensation for police, fire and emergency communications employees. The $0.04 ad valorem tax rate increase is expected to generate approximately $6.176 million with each $0.01 increase generating approximately $1.544 million. The new ad valorem tax rate will be $0.5795 per $100 of property valuation for City residents. This funding is crucial to ensure the City of Fayetteville can recruit and retain qualified public safety personnel.
Allocations to support the Office of Community Safety: $2.5 million in funding is allocated to maintain current Office of Community Safety related activities with $2.3 million in additional funding for the OCS. The new Office will focus on four identified pillars: mental health response and diversion, violence prevention and intervention, homeless risk reduction and youth opportunities.
Municipal Service District Tax Rate Increase: The tax rate increase for the Municipal Service District is necessary to enhance the quality of life and support the growth of the downtown area. The proposed increase from $0.10 to $0.17 will generate just over $105,000 to maintain services such as enhanced security, street maintenance, beautification projects, community events and Downtown Hospitality Officers.
Employee Compensation: An investment of $4.6 million will provide all non-step employees with a 4% salary increase, along with an additional 1% contribution to the 401(k) plan, bringing the total contribution to 3%. This is part of a multiyear recruitment and retention strategy to reach a total of 5% to be competitive with other employers, municipalities and counties in North Carolina.
Infrastructure Improvements: The budget includes significant investments in infrastructure, such as a $1 monthly increase in the stormwater fee to support stormwater management and ongoing maintenance of the city's 751.6 miles of streets and 122 parks and recreation facilities.

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