FY 2021-22 Budget Process Latest Update

Budget Adoption

The City Council will vote on whether to adopt the FY22 Budget on Monday, June 21 at 7:00PM. You can view the final budget book here. 

BUDGET HEALING EVENT on june 8 

Local budgets impact the lives of each and every Durham resident. Yet, too often people feel disconnected from the funding decisions made by elected officials. This year the City and County of Durham are partnering with North Carolina Central University to help build stronger relationships between residents and community leaders.

This event provided an opportunity for the residents of Durham to discuss outstanding needs in our communities, share common goals, and generate ideas for how to spend the more than $50 million that is coming to Durham as a result of the American Rescue Plan Act that was passed by the US Congress earlier this year. These funds may be used to:

Support public health expenditures
Address negative economic impacts caused by the public health emergency
Aid the communities and populations hardest hit by the crisis
Provide premium pay for essential workers
Invest in water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure

Participants had the opportunity to hear from community leaders, discuss current funding opportunities, and contribute their own ideas for how budgeting can support community healing. Thanks to all who participated and helped center the voices of Durham residents most impacted by COVID-19’s health, housing, educational, and economic impacts. 

City Manager FY22 Proposed Budget Presentation 

The City Manager presented the FY22 Proposed Budget to City Council on Monday, May 17th at 7:00PM. You can can view her presentation below and the FY22 Proposed Budget book here.

department budget presentations to the city manager 

Departments presented their proposed budgets, including reductions and new funding requests, to the City Manager in April. 

Fy22 Budget Guidelines

The City Council adopted guidelines for the FY22 budget at their April 5, 2021 meeting. 

FY22 Council Budget retreats

All budget retreats are broadcasted live and recorded, and can be viewed on the City's YouTube Channel. Additional information will be posted as it becomes available. 

Week 2:

February 25, 2021 Budget Retreat Agenda
-Employee Compensation
-City Infrastructure

February 26, 2021 Budget Retreat Agenda 
-911 Calls for Service Project Presentation

Week 1:

February 11, 2021 Budget Retreat Agenda
-Resident Survey
-Citywide Strategic Plan: Overall Update
-Citywide Strategic Plan: Goal Updates
-IdeaStarter

February 12, 2021 Budget Retreat Agenda
-Budget Equity Tool/Budget Engagement Update
-  Financial Projections/Budget Outlook
-CIP & Debt
-Economic Outlook 

FY22 Budget Kickoff

Budget and Management Services held its Budget Kickoff event with City staff on January 6th, 2020. At this event, BMS communicated expectations for the upcoming budget cycle to City departments. Department budget submissions are due to BMS in February. 

FY 2021-22 budget development schedule

City Council adopted the FY 2021-22 budget development schedule at their December 7, 2020 meeting. 

Fall 2020

The City of Durham's Fiscal Year (FY) 2020-21 began on July 1st, 2020. Budget staff are currently working with departments, Council, and the Durham community to develop the FY22 budget which will take effect on July 1st, 2021. 

To learn more about the City's budget process, please view our new videos:

Video 1: What is a Budget?

Video 2: Budget Development Timeline

FY 2020-21 Budget Process

June 15, 2020 City Council Meeting

City Council voted to adopt the FY 2020-21 Budget and Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) on June 15, 2020. The meeting agenda and materials can be found here.

The proposed FY20-21 City of Durham Budget can be found here. The final budget book for the FY21 Adopted Budget will be posted in the coming weeks. 

Previous FY 2020-21 Budget Meetings

June 1, 2020 Public Hearing FY20-21 Budget

In order to obtain written and oral comments on the proposed FY 2020-21 City of Durham Budget, a public hearing was held virtually on June 1, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. All interested residents and organizations were encouraged to view the meeting online. Public Comments were accepted from Thursday, May 28, 2020 at 5 p.m. until 72 hours after the Public Hearing. All submitted comments were provided to the City Council for their review prior to the virtual meeting. Public comments are limited to 500 words.

Individuals wishing to make remarks completed a Public Comment Form at https://durhamnc.gov/3012/Public-Hearings-and-Notices or contacted the City Clerk’s office at 919-560-4166, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Council Budget Work Sessions

The Durham City Council held two budget work sessions to hear presentations from various departments. Materials from the meetings can be found below.

May 27th, 10 AM - 1 PM

1. Revenues
2. Pay and Benefits
   
3. General Services
   
4. Parks and Recreation
5. Transportation

May 28th, 10 AM - 1 PM

1. Planning
2. Public Works
3. Community Development
4. Office of Economic and Workforce Development
5. Engagement

The full version of the Manager’s Proposed budget can be viewed here.

May 18, 2020 Manager’s Proposed Budget

Durham City Manager Tom Bonfield presented a proposed FY20-21 budget on May 18. You can access a PDF of his presentation and the proposed budget below: 

City of Durham FY21 Proposed Budget (Brief)

Durham City Manager Proposed Budget Presentation

The City Manager will present the FY21 Manager’s Proposed Budget on Monday, May 18th at 7:00PM during the City Council Meeting. You can watch his presentation live here.

April 24, 2020 Special City Council Meeting 

The City Council held a Virtual Special City Council Meeting on the FY21 budget on Friday, April 24th. 

• 1. Meeting Agenda
• 2. Meeting Materials
• 3. Revised Budget Guidelines

The meeting can be viewed below and the News & Observer highlights discussion points and key takeaways from the meeting in this article.

April 6th, 2020 City Council Meeting

At the April 6th City Council Meeting, Budget Director Bertha Johnson provided an update on the FY21 budget process to City Council. Highlights include BMS continuing to conduct budget meetings with departments, analyzing the impact of COVID-19 on future revenues, and working on the FY20 Quarter 3 report. This update can be viewed in the below video starting around the 2:25:00 mark. 

March 16th, 2020 Public Budget Hearing and Budget Academy

Out of an abundance of caution and in the interest of promoting public health, the City canceled the Budget Academy event which was scheduled for March 16th at 5:00PM. During this current period where we are unable to hold public in-person events, Budget & Management services will continue to provide information to Durham residents through our website. 

City Council Budget Retreats

In February, Budget & Management Services hosted two City Council budget retreats. Agendas and presentations from these meetings can be viewed below:

Retreat 1: Friday, February 14th, 2020

• February 14th Retreat Agenda
  • Citywide Strategic Plan
  • Resident Survey Presentation
  • Resident Survey Engagement
  • Durham Development Trends
  • Financial Projections and Budget Outlook
  • CIP and Debt
    • Exhibit A CIP Handout
• During this meeting, Council established that they would like to be transparent about the requests they plan to submit for inclusion in the City of Durham budget. Council discussed their budget requests and prioritization methodology during the City Council Work Session on March 5th, 2020. In doing so, Council worked towards identifying which requests that they planned to include in the FY21 Annual Budget. Materials can be viewed here.

Retreat 2: Friday, February 28th, 2020

• February 28th Retreat Agenda
  • Understanding American Economic Inequality
  • Equity and Inclusion Update
  • Workforce Development / Job Readiness
  • Affordable Housing Spending Plan
  • Transit / Parking Fund
  • Participatory Budgeting Program Evaluation
  • Economic Outlook

Read the City of Durham's Proposed FY 2019-20 Proposed Budget below and see more information at the following links:

Review and Adoption:

• FY 2019-20 Council Review and Adoption Schedule
  • May 29th Work Session (AM Presentations, PM Presentations)
  • May 30th Work Session (AM Presentations, PM Presentations)
• FY 2019-20 Proposed Budget (PDF Download) 

Fiscal Year 2019-20 City Council Budget Retreats

First City Council Budget Retreat - February 15, 2019

Agenda with links to presentations

First Retreat Audio:

Second City Council Budget Retreat - March 8, 2019

Agenda | AM Presentations | PM Presentations

Second Retreat Audio Part 1::

Second Retreat Audio Part 2::

FY 2018-19 Preliminary Budget Document

• City Council Budget Work Session - May 30, 2018 (Agenda, AM Presentations & PM Presentations)
• City Council Budget Work Session - May 31, 2018 (Agenda, AM Presentations & Draft Strategic Plan)
  • Community Development Handouts: FY 2018-19 Funding, Dedicated Housing Fund Spending & Homelessness and Eviction Budget

City Council Budget Retreat - Feb. 23, 2018 (Agenda)

City Council Budget Retreat - Mar. 16, 2018 (Agenda)

• Mar. 16  Agenda Addendum
  
  

• FY 2017 - 2018 Preliminary Budget (PDF)
  
• FY 2017 - 2018 Preliminary Budget Presentation (PDF)
• Año Fiscal 2017 - Desarrollo del Presupuesto (PDF)
• City Council Budget Retreat - Day 1 (PDF)
  
• City Council Budget Retreat - Day 2 (PDF)
• Fiscal Year 2017-18 Budget Schedule (PDF)
• FY 17 Coffee With Council Presentation (PDF)

• Año Fiscal 2016 - Desarrollo del Presupuesto (PDF
• FY 16 Coffee With Council Presentation - PAC 2 (PDF)
  
• City Council Budget Retreat - Day 1 (PDF)
  
• City Council Budget Retreat - Day 2 (PDF)