Dallas Passes Record FY27 Budget

The Dallas City Council approved an approximately $5.7 billion budget for fiscal year 2027 Wednesday after hours of debate and amendments, increasing funding for police and fire while cutting or restructuring spending in several other areas.

The budget passed 10-5. Council Members Adam Bazaldua, Paula Blackmon, Bill Roth, Cara Mendelsohn and Paul Ridley voted against it.

The council also approved a property tax rate of 69.78 cents per $100 of assessed value, a 0.1-cent decrease from the current rate.

Police and Fire Receive Largest General Fund Allocations

The city’s General Fund, which pays for many of Dallas’ most visible services, totals about $2.04 billion in the new budget.

The Dallas Police Department will receive more than $823 million from the General Fund for fiscal year 2027. That compares with about $758 million budgeted for 2026, although the city expects to spend roughly $6.6 million more than the 2026 budgeted amount this year. Police and fire together account for most of the General Fund increase. Public-safety spending is slated to rise by about $80 million to $83 million, and police and fire are projected to make up about 63% of General Fund spending in FY 2027.

Mendelsohn raised concerns about potential legal challenges if Dallas fails to comply with Proposition U. Approved by voters in 2024, the measure requires the city to maintain at least 4,000 sworn police officers and sets compensation requirements intended to place starting salaries and non-pension benefits for Dallas police officers among the top five of qualifying police departments in Dallas, Collin, Tarrant, Denton and Rockwall counties.

The city manager’s budget proposal targeted 3,651 sworn officers by the end of fiscal year 2027 and 3,800 by the end of fiscal year 2028. Those projections would leave Dallas 349 and 200 officers short, respectively, of Proposition U’s 4,000-officer minimum.

“We have to put our money where our mouth is. We can’t have the mayor on a national stage saying public safety is number one and then not fund it,” Mendelsohn said.

Dallas Fire-Rescue will receive just over $471 million, up from about $453 million in the 2026 budget. The city expects to spend approximately $7.7 million more than its 2026 budgeted amount this year.

The increases come as Dallas works to balance the budget after facing a shortfall and weaker-than-expected sales tax revenue. City officials have said property tax growth from new construction and reappraisals, along with sales tax revenue, make up much of the General Fund’s revenue.

Library and Arts Funding Reduced

Other departments will receive less funding under the 2027 budget.

The Office of Arts and Culture’s funding will fall from about $16 million in 2026 to approximately $13 million in 2027. The initial proposal called for eliminating 12 positions, but the council restored funding for two of three positions that had been slated for elimination in the Public Art program.

Housing and Community Empowerment funding will decline from about $22 million to roughly $18 million. The original proposal eliminated more than $900,000 for eviction advocacy, but the council restored $500,000.

The Dallas Public Library will use a flagship-branch model, with five locations offering extended hours and additional services. No branches will close. Council amendments restored some neighborhood library hours and staffing that the city manager’s proposal had slated for cuts.

Council Debates City Hall Maintenance

The budget does not include funding for deferred maintenance at Dallas City Hall, an issue the council has debated throughout the year.

Bazaldua criticized the decision, saying the budget fell short on several areas, including animal services, eviction advocacy, and facilities management.

“After everything this council has been through this year, we did not put a single dollar of deferred maintenance funding towards City Hall,” Bazaldua said, per KERA News.

The issue has been part of a broader debate over the future and condition of the City Hall building.

Council Members Defend and Criticize Budget

Council Member Kathy Stewart, who voted for the budget, said council members worked to balance competing needs throughout the budget process.

“We will live with this budget. We will learn to love parts of it and maybe hate other parts of it,” Stewart said, per KERA. “But that’s what this is, it’s a process, right? We’re never going to do this perfectly.”

Mayor Eric Johnson said in a statement following the vote that the city manager’s proposed budget provided a strong foundation, but criticized the council for reversing some proposed cost-saving measures.

“Unfortunately, during the budget process, the council reversed a number of the City Manager’s proposed cost-saving measures,” Johnson said. “This pattern cannot continue.”

The final budget represents the council’s decisions after weeks of hearings, workshops, and amendments. It will take effect on October 1.