Concord manager presents FY2026 proposal featuring 3.9% city tax increase, police headquarters placeholder and $5.85M golf clubhouse request

The Concord City Manager presented the city’s Fiscal Year 2026 proposed budget to the Finance Committee on May 15, saying the proposal would require a 3.9% city tax-rate increase — an estimated 39¢ on the city portion that the manager calculated would make the city portion of the tax rate $10.23. The presentation included a $38,400,000 line for a new police headquarters in the capital program (funding not requested at this time), a $5,850,000 budget request for a redesigned golf clubhouse, and recommended monthly water and wastewater rate increases of $1.65 and $3.15 respectively.

The presentation, the City Manager said, is a “road map for continued development” and a starting point for council review. He noted Concord’s Standard & Poor’s bond rating of double-A plus and that the city’s unassigned fund balance stood at 21.6% as of June 30, 2024. The manager warned that large, sustained reductions in the unassigned fund balance could prompt a rating downgrade by agencies that use that metric.

Why it matters: the proposed tax and utility rate changes affect households and municipal revenues, while the police headquarters figure—though shown in the capital plan—has not been brought to the council for appropriation or design approval. The manager said final design, funding proposals and public hearings would be required before any appropriation for the police facility.

Key budget details and fiscal context follow. The manager said the FY2026 proposal would raise the city portion of the tax rate by 39¢ (3.9%), which he calculated would be $156 for a $400,000 house under the examples used in the presentation. He described the FY2026 total budget across all funds as roughly $154.9 million, with the general fund at approximately…