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City manager proposes $947.9 million FY26 budget; education and public safety drive increases
Summary
City Manager presented a FY26 spending plan that would nearly reach $948 million, a 6.2% increase driven by education, collective bargaining settlements and infrastructure; council sent budget items to finance and scheduled hearings ahead of the June 20 statutory vote.
City Manager presented Worcester’s proposed FY26 operating and capital budgets on May 6, asking the City Council to begin hearings on a $947,900,000 spending plan he described as focused on “strengthening the core city service.”
The City Manager told the council, “We're inching a billion dollar budget for the City Of Worcester,” and described a proposed 6.2% increase over FY25. The plan assumes stable property-tax growth under Proposition 2½, new growth, and higher state aid in the governor’s budget. The administration projects a roughly $17.6 million increase from property-tax growth and a $2.4 million rise in local receipts.
The proposal allocates the largest single share to education: the FY26 education budget is presented at $574.4 million, about 60.8% of the total. The administration said the Worcester Public Schools general-fund budget would grow roughly $38.2 million (about 8%). Other pressures cited included increases in pensions, health insurance (projected at 6% this year), and collective-bargaining settlements that drive public-safety costs.
CFO responses and council questions framed next steps. Erin Taylor, the budget director, and the city CFO were identified by the manager as primary staff for subsequent hearings. Councilor King asked whether the city expects to meet net school spending obligations; the CFO, Michael McCarthy, replied, “For FY 25, we do expect to meet, net school spending,” and said FY26 remains a moving target dependent on school expenditures.
The council voted to send the budget-related items and the capital and loan orders to the Finance Committee and scheduled a series of department hearings in the weeks before the final statutory vote, which the manager noted is due by June 20, 2025. The administration also flagged risks: potential changes in state aid, volatility in local receipts (motor-vehicle excise, meals and hotel taxes) and fixed costs such as pension and debt-service obligations.
The presentation included proposed investments in public safety (recruit classes and a South Division fire station stabilization fund), infrastructure (pavement management and capital projects), parks (increased cleanup and aquatic maintenance funding) and workforce strategies including a paid fleet-management internship with Worcester Technical High School.
Councilors and residents who spoke earlier during public comment urged greater transparency on school funding and on specific capital allocations. The council will hold detailed budget hearings with department heads and financial staff before acting on the FY26 budget by the statutory deadline.
