Asheville staff present FY2025–26 budget with 3.26‑cent tax‑rate increase; council signals plan to add three firefighter trainees using fund balance

City staff presented a proposed fiscal year 2025–26 budget June 5 that would raise the property tax rate by 3.26 cents and preserve a 15% fund‑balance policy target, while including pay adjustments and one‑time and ongoing investments across city services.

Tony McDowell, city staff, told the council “the budget is balanced with a 3.26 property tax rate increase,” and said the proposed total budget across all funds is roughly $256 million, about a 2.1% increase over the current year. McDowell said the general fund component increases by about $2.9 million, or 1.6%.

The budget would maintain a 15% fund balance target, fund a mix of recovery and capital spending, and include a compensation package that staff said provides a 3% increase for employees on the general pay plan and a set flat increase for employees earning below the city median. McDowell also said police staff receiving compression adjustments average about a 6.5% increase and that the fire pay plan would receive a 3% increase.

Council members pressed staff on one discrete funding decision: two proposals to add three firefighter trainees who would begin mid‑year in January 2026. City staff presented two funding options for the roughly $155,000 next‑year cost (about a half‑year of salary and equipment) — (A) reduce the sustainability department budget by that amount or (B) use general‑fund balance to cover the first‑year cost. Staff estimated the full recurring cost after training at about $248,000 annually.

Mayor Esther Manheimer said she supported option B, drawing council discussion toward maintaining the sustainability program’s work while still adding the firefighter positions. Vice Mayor Antoinette Mosley, Council member Beau Hess and others verbally supported using fund balance in the “margin of error,” and Council member Kim Roney said she could support option B because the projected fund balance would be about 14.9%.

City staff cautioned that using fund balance is a one‑time source. McDowell said the projected drop to about 14.9% could require future adjustments if additional revenue does not materialize, and warned that restored funding or future revenue could change outcomes.

Council did not take a formal vote June 5. Staff said they would present the budget adoption ordinance on the council agenda for June 10 with the proposed adjustment to add the three firefighter trainees funded from fund balance so the council can take formal action then.

Council members also asked for additional informational detail before Tuesday’s vote. Council member Kim Roney requested clearer documentation of the revenue streams and recent settlement proceeds that influenced the budget and asked when closed‑session minutes related to those matters would be public. City Attorney Brad Branham told the council that, because the settlement terms had been finalized and satisfied, he would consider those closed‑session minutes public record immediately if requested.

The manager’s recommended budget also incorporates roughly $5 million in general‑fund reductions, use of targeted fund balances in enterprise funds, and a $5 million FEMA Community Disaster Loan to help close the FY26 gap while limiting the property tax impact for homeowners to staff estimates of about $114 a year (about $9.51 per month) for the average Asheville homeowner. Staff listed ongoing investments in recovery, capital projects, water system work and housing programs in the proposed plan.

Staff requested council direction to bring the budget with the firefighter funding adjustment forward for adoption on June 10.