Providence finance committee approves amended FY2026 budget with 5.85% levy increase

The Providence City Finance Committee voted on Monday to approve an amended Fiscal Year 2026 budget and send the package to the full City Council for final votes, adopting an overall tax levy increase of 5.85% and revisions to property tax classifications intended to spread increases more evenly among residents.

“I can say tonight confidently that we have delivered on our commitment,” Chair Helen Anthony said, describing the committee’s goal of advancing “a balanced budget that met all obligations and protected core city services while ensuring that no one group of residents was favored or punished over any other.”

The committee approved changes negotiated with Mayor Smiley that the chair said reduce what would have been disproportionately large increases for owner-occupied two- to five-unit homes. The chair said owner-occupied single-family homes and owner-occupied two- to five-family units will see an average increase of about 6% under the amended plan; the committee said that figure replaces an earlier projection as high as 16% for some two- to five-family properties. Committee members also highlighted restoration of a sustainability policy associate position that had been cut in the mayor’s original proposal and secured funding to cover bulky-item disposal fees, removing a proposed $20-per-item charge.

Why it matters: Committee members described the package as an attempt to meet obligations— including funding for schools and public safety—while distributing tax increases more evenly across property classes. Several speakers at the public hearing urged alternatives to raising property taxes, and many warned that higher tax…