New Castle County executive unveils $370 million FY26 budget with steep property tax rate cuts and one-time relief proposal

County Executive Marcus Henry delivered his first budget address to New Castle County Council, proposing a $370,000,000 operating budget and an $84,000,000 capital plan and outlining steps to respond to a countywide property reassessment and rising costs.

"I am grateful for the opportunity to be here tonight to present the FY 26 budget for Newcastle County," Henry said, adding that he is "honored to stand before you in council's chambers as Newcastle County's first county executive of color." He said the budget seeks to preserve services while addressing workforce and cost-of-living pressures.

The nut of the proposal is a set of tax-rate adjustments tied to the reassessment the county completed after a 2020 Court of Chancery decision. Henry said the administration would lower the tax rate for residential properties in unincorporated areas from 80¢ per $100 of assessed value to 16¢ per $100, and reduce the nonresidential rate in unincorporated areas from $0.80 per $100 to $0.24 per $100. Henry said those changes are intended to be revenue neutral relative to projected collections under the new assessments.

Henry also said he signed an executive order to lower the threshold for pursuing vacant-property owners at sheriff sale from $5,000 to $2,500 and that the administration will work with council to increase fees on vacant properties. He introduced an ordinance that, if passed by council, would provide one-time low-income tax assistance for qualifying residential property owners with household incomes under $50,000.

On the reassessment process, Henry said the administration is asking council to approve a resolution to appoint 30 referees to conduct formal appeals hearings; that resolution was to be considered by council at the same meeting. He thanked constituent services staff for handling appeals inquiries and named Greg Gross and Mandy Sawyer for their work.

Public safety and emergency services are priorities in the plan. Henry proposed a one-time $3,000,000 grant to support volunteer fire-company operations and said the county will create a countywide committee to plan for the fire service's future. He also announced an intent to build a new paramedic station south of the canal to maintain response times in a rapidly growing southern part of the county.

Henry outlined personnel and training initiatives including an Emergency Vehicle Operations Course (EVOC) facility he said the county hopes to expand with federal funding, and an ordinance to raise the police mandatory retirement age from 55 to 57 aimed at retaining about 26 officers over five years. He highlighted the actions of county officers after a March 30 traffic crash and presented a challenge coin to Officer Drew Johnson for his response; Henry said Officer Michael Merrill helped free Johnson and both applied lifesaving care to injured children.

Libraries, parks and infrastructure also feature in the proposal. Henry said demolition of the Newark Free Library building will begin soon and that a new facility is expected to open by spring 2027. He said the administration is evaluating sites for a new library in the Glasgow area and listed investments in parks (including construction at Banning Park, Del Castle Park and Bechtel Park), two miles of new bike trail and replacement playgrounds at 10 community parks. Henry noted the county maintains about 6,000 acres of parkland and over 1,800 miles of sewer lines.

Henry framed the budget as balancing near-term financial pressures with long-term investments and said his administration will pursue revenue-enhancement measures, capture unpaid taxes and fees, and work with federal and state delegations to protect federal funding streams used for programs such as the Housing Choice Voucher Program and Community Development Block Grants.

Council action recorded in the meeting was limited. Henry said council would consider the referees resolution and the introduced low-income tax-assistance ordinance; no final council vote on the budget was recorded in the transcript. The only formal vote captured in the meeting minutes was a voice vote to adjourn that passed after a motion and second.

The administration provided several numeric details in the speech: a proposed $370,000,000 operating budget and $84,000,000 capital program; proposed residential tax-rate cut to 16¢ per $100 and nonresidential to 24¢ per $100 in unincorporated areas; a proposed one-time $3,000,000 grant for fire companies; and a request that council appoint 30 referees to hear assessment appeals. Henry said the county's emergency communications division answers more than 1,000 calls per day and employs 71 emergency communicators, and that emergency medical services average 164 calls per day, with paramedics meeting a cited 67-minute benchmark for a key cardiac-care interval.

No votes on the budget or the introduced ordinances were recorded in the available transcript. Council members present at roll call were counted as 12 present, 1 absent earlier in the evening.