Overview
- The Dallas City Council passed the roughly $5.7 billion fiscal 2027 budget in a 10–5 vote on Wednesday, adopting a slight property tax-rate cut to 69.78 cents per $100 valuation.
- Council action raises police and fire spending so those departments account for about 63–65% of General Fund outlays and increases police funding by roughly $65–83 million versus 2026.
- City staffing changes in the budget eliminate nearly 300 positions and include 108 layoffs, with the proposal also considering a shift for some employees from PPO to HMO health coverage.
- Despite added public-safety funding, the budget projects 3,651 sworn officers by the end of FY2027 and 3,800 by the end of FY2028, leaving the city short of Proposition U’s 4,000-officer requirement.
- Council amendments restored targeted library and recreation hours, cut funding for arts and housing programs, and set up near-term risks such as litigation over Prop U and tense negotiations with police and fire unions.