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Local Government

Property Tax Increase Approved by Durham City Council

Wes Platt

Wes Platt

— 4 min read
Property Tax Increase Approved by Durham City Council

The Durham City Council on Monday unanimously approved the $668 million budget for the 2024-2025 fiscal year, with a property tax rate increase of 3.85 cents per $100 of property value.

The new rate is 59.62 cents, up from 55.77 cents in 2023.

According to the property tax bill calculator, that means the annual city tax bill for a home valued at $448,000 would increase $172.48, from $2,498.50 to $2,670.98.

City utility rates also go up in the budget:

Increases in the water and sewer bill for 2024-2025. Source: City of Durham.
  • Water and sewer: Monthly increase of $2.66 for Tier 2 residential customers.
  • Stormwater: Monthly increase of $1.55 for Tier 2 residential customers.
Stormwater rate increase impact. Source: City of Durham.

As with Durham Public Schools, much of the city’s 9.5% budget increase can be attributed to paying city employees salaries that are closer to market rate.

How the city salaries change:

  • General step plan employees: 7.6% to 20.21% increases.
  • Open-range plan employees: 6.62% to 9.76%.
  • Executive employees: Capped at 5%.
  • Sworn fire department employees: Up to 17.65%.
  • Sworn police department employees: Up to 22.5%.

The minimum livable wage for city employees climbs to $19.58 per hour or $40,726 per year.

Although approved unanimously, the budget didn’t accomplish all that some council members had hoped, with members Chelsea Cook, DeDreana Freeman, and Nate Baker lamenting that it didn’t do enough to address the needs of Durham’s sanitation workers.

“I don’t think this budget reflects the budget that any individual up here would’ve created, but I do think it does do a phenomenal job of taking a lot of complicated views up here and creating one single document that reflects the values of all of us,” said Council Member Nate Baker. “I want to acknowledge that that’s an incredibly challenging job and this budget does raise property taxes and it does so for a very good reason that many people have come forward and requested.”

Mayor Pro Tempore Mark-Anthony Middleton noted: “We didn’t all get everything we wanted, but it’s been said often times that a budget is a values statement, a statement of morality.” He said the budget showed Durham’s commitment to Vision Zero, to the immigrant and LGBTQ+ communities, and more that helps “put Durham at the top of the heap.”

Council Member Javiera Caballero, voting on her seventh budget, added that it was the hardest budget since the unknowns of COVID, but that her colleagues and city staff should be proud of themselves for the accomplishment.

“We are a mixed bag of thoughts, beliefs, ideals, yet we come together,” said Mayor Leonardo Williams. He acknowledged that the budget isn’t perfect, but said “the positives outweigh the negatives by far.”

The budget includes funding for several community programs, including:

  • Guaranteed Income Program.
  • Hayti Reborn Justice Movement.
  • Immigrant Legal Defense Fund.
  • Durham Expunction and Restoration (DEAR) Program.
  • Durham County Low-Income Homeowners Relief Program.
  • New Office of Survivor Care.
  • New Summer Camp Grant Fund.

GoDurham buses remain free to riders through June 30 next year under the new budget. Some funds are set aside for the Vision Zero Durham program to reduce traffic injuries and deaths. The budget also creates three full-time positions in the city’s planning and transportation departments.

About $85 million will go to capital projects, including remediation of lead-contaminated soil in city parks, school zone speed reductions, neighborhood bicycle routes, and bike lane vertical protection. Enterprise fund projects total $147.4 million related to water and sewer, stormwater, and solid waste.

Durham Mayor Leonardo Williams reacts to the unanimous vote to put a referendum for parks and recreation projects on the November ballot.

Later in the meeting on Monday, the council voted unanimously to put a referendum for $200 million in general obligation bond projects for parks and recreation on the November general election ballot.

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