Council approves FY2027 budget and tax rate

Fort Worth City Council approved the Fiscal Year 2027 budget Tuesday evening. This year’s budget is shaped by an increase in population growth, with the City’s population now exceeding 1 million, and by the deteriorating property tax landscape locally and across Texas.

The approved operating budget is $3.33 billion, an increase of 10.81%, or just over $241 million, from the FY2026 adopted budget.

City Council directed that several programs slated to be reduced in FY27 be restored. These include a PetSmart satellite adoption center in Alliance; a low number of restored employee positions to avoid service-level impacts; and employee Pay for Performance increases in the 4-4.5% range, to be paid at mid-year, in April 2027.

The total cost to restore those services and positions was $4.09 million.

Property tax rate

The approved tax rate for tax year 2026 is $0.70565 per $100 of valuation, an increase of 3.565 cents from the current tax rate of $0.6700. The average residential property in Fort Worth decreased in taxable value by $13,616. So even with the higher tax rate, the tax bill for that average property will decrease by $8.19 compared to the previous year.

Changes in the property tax landscape can be attributed to several factors:

Growth is not translating into increased values and property tax revenues, largely due to a new reappraisal plan implemented by the Tarrant Appraisal District, which has not reappraised residential property since 2024.

Property tax protest volume is increasing every year.

The potential exists for additional changes at the state level, creating uncertain conditions for budget forecasting.

Emphasis on critical services

Across the FY27 budget, investments have been maintained in critical City services. The entire 3.565-cent property tax rate increase supports General Fund operational needs. The PayGo component of the tax rate remains unchanged, allowing for sustained cash investment in infrastructure improvements. Similarly, the debt service rate remains static to support future bond capacity.

Fee increases on certain City services, where needed, will pay for the cost of service. Increased resident charges were approved Tuesday, including adjustments to the stormwater fee, water and wastewater charges, solid waste charges and the environmental fee.

Based on typical usage, a typical Fort Worth resident will pay about $7 more per month in City usage fees in the coming year.

The approved FY27 budget aligns with the City Council’s Strategic Priorities: Economic Development, Community Investment, Community Safety, Infrastructure and Responsible Growth. The City’s new fiscal year starts Oct. 1.

Get articles like this in your inbox. Subscribe to City News.