From the Desk of the County Manager, June 12, 2026

Greetings Durham:

Each year, I present the Durham County Board of Commissioners with a robust fiscal plan developed through careful, strategic review of departmental requests and alignment with the County’s priorities, goals, and objectives. Durham County’s Board of County Commissioners unanimously approved a $1.05 billion budget. The FY 2026-2027 adopted budget is 1.09% more than the FY 2025-2026 budget.

The comprehensive fiscal year 2026-2027 budget that was unanimously approved by County Commissioners on June 8, 2026, is made possible by the keen insight, analysis, and expertise of numerous County departments, staff members, and other partner organizations who dedicated significant time detailing how each potential expenditure aligns with one of our seven budget priorities and guiding principles.

They are:

• Maintaining fiscal strength.
• Providing most services at current levels.
• Limiting property tax rate growth.
• Supporting County personnel through a cost-of-living adjustment
• Supplying appropriate Public Safety services to a growing population.
• Allocating adequate funding for Durham Public Schools.

Given the slowing overall revenue growth, the focus was on maintaining existing programs and ensuring a robust review of mandated services in the coming fiscal year. To ensure certain programs were supported, departments were asked to reallocate wherever possible from existing budgeted amounts, and most County departments incorporated 2% department budget reductions. There was a net position increase of only eight new FY 2026-27, keeping this net increase lower than recent years, achieved through a review of existing vacancies and realigning those positions.  

This budget focuses on maintaining the County’s core services, providing a 2% cost-of-living increase, funding public safety needs related to population growth, and supporting education. County departments expressed needs for expanded programming and new services.

Other highlights from the FY 2026-2027 adopted budget include:

• 2% Cost of Living Increase (COLA) in employee salaries
• $1.5 million increase in County health insurance costs without an increase in employee-paid support
• 10 new FTEs in EMS to support increased call volume and supplement peak staffing
• 5.0 reallocated FTEs in the Sheriff’s Office to support increased coverage in the Research Triangle Park area as well as throughout the County.
• 1 new FTE in the Justice Service department to facilitate the expansion of mental health services at the County detention center.
• DPS total funding of $239,078,901, a $14.55 million increase (6.48%) from FY 2025-26 County funding, bringing the local per pupil funding amount up to $5,998.
• Intergovernmental funds received in Public Health decreased by $1.7 million (16.0% decrease) due to changing landscapes at the State and federal levels.
• 2% reductions in most County department budgets to offset salary and benefits increased costs.
• Redwood Fire Tax District increase of 0.25 cents
• New Hope Fire Tax District increase of 1.5 cents
• Eno Fire Tax District increase of 2.0 cents
• A new Mangum Fire Tax District was created with a property tax rate of 4.70 cents.

We are thankful to the Durham residents who actively participated in the budget planning process by attending and providing feedback at the Public Hearing, completing the Budget Survey and joining or viewing the County Commissioners’ Budget Work Sessions. Your input helped shape the final budget.

The full adopted budget document will be posted in the coming weeks at dconc.gov/Budget-and-Management-Services, where budget documents going back 10 years are also available. For a summary of the approved ordinance, visit this link.

Until next week,

Claudia Hager
Durham County Manager