Portsmouth council adopts FY2027 budget measures, approves several fee increases

The Portsmouth City Council on May 12 approved a package of fiscal measures for fiscal year 2027 that included the capital improvement program and several local fee increases while drawing public concern about affordability and transparency.

The council voted to appropriate $140,813,798 for the FY2027 capital improvement fund and advanced ordinances that raise rates for water and sewage, increase stormwater utility fees and adjust waste collection and cemetery charges. The operating budget for fiscal year 2027 was read as $598,146,297. Clerk-read language shows the ordinances rely on cited city-code and state-code provisions for authority.

Public commenters pressed the council on how new revenues would be spent and whether the public had adequate notice. Donna Biggs, a frequent speaker from the Woodbine Farms neighborhood, told the council the budget was prepared "without the permission and the information" of residents and asked how fee revenue would be used in communities that still experience standing water and unmaintained ditches.

Labor and safety concerns factored into the public record. Tiffany Stewart, a lieutenant paramedic and executive vice president of Local 539, urged the council to restore previously removed fire-department positions and warned that staffing decisions taken now affect emergency response capabilities next year: "Fire recruits spend over a year in training before they ever respond to a 911 call independently," she said, arguing that authorizing positions creates a hiring pipeline rather than simply filling today's vacancies.

On fiscal particulars and scale, resident and longtime commentator Mark Godold Yatrowski questioned large percentage increases in cemetery fees and pushed the council to explain whether costs had actually risen to justify increases of 50% to 100% in some fee lines.

Council votes in the meeting's roll calls were mixed. The ordinance to increase rates for water and sewage was adopted 5-2 after Councilman Tillage and Councilwoman Thomas announced they would oppose the measure, specifically objecting to an automatic annual 5% increase. The stormwater utility fee ordinance and the waste-collection ordinance were adopted unanimously (7-0). The cemetery-fee table passed 5-2, with the same council members opposing the scale of increases. The capital improvement appropriation was adopted 7-0.

Several council members said they supported the overall budget work but warned about approving local commitments before the Commonwealth's budget is finalized. Councilwoman Thomas and Councilman Tillage said they would vote against the operating budget vote because state-level funding for Portsmouth Public Schools remains uncertain; the clerk recorded that the operating-budget ordinance was adopted in the electronic vote (the transcript's roll-call text for that item is not legible). Council members who backed the budget said the measures provide continuity for city services and capital planning.

The council also approved a resolution authorizing the city manager to file documents to obtain the city's Community Planning and Development grant entitlements and accepted a $213,809 state compensation-board allocation earmarked for one-time constitutional officer staff bonuses.

The meeting concluded with requests for follow-up on neighborhood infrastructure and code-enforcement complaints, and reminders of upcoming community events.

What happens next: Deferred items (including two subitems the council postponed to June 23) will return for public input at the later meeting; council staff said registered speakers who sign up then will have an opportunity to speak when the items are considered.