Departments » Finance

Approved Budget Fiscal Year 2026 - 2027

Font Size: + -
Share & Bookmark, Press Enter to show all options, press Tab go to next option
Print
Albemarle City Council approved the Fiscal Year 2027 budget by a 6-0 vote on June 29. The budget is balanced and includes no property tax increase.
 

There are no changes to rates for water, or sewer. Fees for solid waste collection and disposal are unchanged.

Electric rates will increase 2% as a result of our Public Power provider's rising costs of business. This is the City's first rate increase in the past 11 years. During that time, the average residential electric customer saw a 15.5% decrease in electric rates. 

Budget Basics 

In the Fiscal Year 2027 budget, more than 100% of all property tax revenue to be collected by the City will be required to fund the Police and Fire Departments.
 
The City's General Fund, which is made up of property taxes, sales taxes, fees, and other revenues totals $26,507,618.
 
It is important to note that electric, water, sewer, and solid waste fees are NOT part of the General Fund. These services are user fee based. NO tax dollars are used to fund these services.
 
Where does a General Fund Dollar go?

 Information graphic explains how a general fund dollar divided among the City operations

The Fiscal Year 2027 budget, 56 cents of every General Fund Dollar will be spent on public safety (Police & Fire Departments).

12 cents of every General Fund Dollar will be spent on Public Works (streets & sidewalk paving and repair, right-of-way maintenance, fleet maintenance).

Nine cents of every General Fund Dollar will be spent on Parks and Recreation (athletics, programs, special events, facilities).

Four cents of every General Fund Dollar will be spent on Planning and Community Development (development services, zoning administration, code enforcement).

11 cents of every General Fund Dollar will be spent on General Government which includes the City's Governing Body, Administration, Economic Development, Downtown Development, Human Resources, Finance, Legal, Information Systems, Public Information, and Building Maintenance

Five cents of every General Fund Dollar will be utilized for Debit Service.

Four cents of every General Fund Dollar will be utilized for Fund Transfers and Contingency.

The budget process was developed to align with the goals and objectives of the City of Albemarle's Strategic Plan. The plan was developed following responses from residents to a community survey, feedback from City Staff, and input from City Council.
 
The City of Albemarle’s Strategic Plan includes five goals:
 
-Organizational Capacity
-Safety & Security
-Infrastructure
-Community & Economic Growth Opportunities
-Inclusive Community Engagement
 

General Fund Highlighted Expenditures

Strategic Plan Goal - Safety & Security

-Fire Station 3 Renovation

-Fire Station 4 Design/Engineering 

-Funding for Expenses associated with 10 Firefighter Positions related to FEMA Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant

-Continued principal and interest of new fire engine

-SCBA masks, turnout gear, smoke and CO2 detectors, apparatus supplies, etc.

-Clothing, boots & other gear

-Funding for NFPA physicals

-Community engagement and risk reduction activities

-New Police Vehicles (7 total)

-Armored Van (APD)

-Police Ballistic, Tactical, and Forensics Equipment

-Public Safety Continuity of Operations Plan and Emergency Action Plan

-Principal & Interest payments on APD Headquarters, Body Cameras, In-Car Cameras

-Continued replacement of APD in-car laptops (15 in FY 27)

-Purchase of firearms

-Purchase of uniforms and protective gear (APD)

-Staff Training & Development

Strategic Plan Goal – Infrastructure
 
-Street preservation and maintenance ($1.3-million-dollars budgeted matches the most money the city has ever allocated)
 
-Curb and gutter repair and replacements
 
-Sidewalk repairs

-Downtown property landscaping

-General right of way maintenance

-New Fleet Maintenance Facility Engineering & Design 
 

-Microsoft 365 licensing citywide

-Multi Factor Authentication (MFA) licensing for citywide security

-Anti-virus/malware, firewall integration

-Email filtering, protection, and archive technology

Strategic Plan Goal – Community and Economic Development Growth Opportunities 

-Funding for Award-Winning Downtown Catalyst Grant

-Updated Unified Development Ordinance to control growth & development

-Marketing for the Albemarle Business Center

Strategic Plan Goal - Inclusive Community Engagement

-Funding for Parks and Recreation Master Plan implementation 

-Parks & Recreation after school program, summer camp, challenge program

-Food Truck Fridays

-Special events (Downtown Trick or Treat, Christmas Parade, Christmas Open House, etc.)

-Public facing Strategic Plan Dashboard Online (supports departmental reporting)