Editor’s note: This story was updated on May 12 to add the dates of the city’s budget work sessions and public hearing.
Fayetteville’s annual budget may not be the kind of thing you curl up with on a Sunday afternoon. But behind the jargon—fund balance, capital improvement plan, ad valorem rate—is a document that shapes daily life in the city.
The Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 operating budget came in at $315.2 million, funded largely by property taxes, sales taxes, and fees paid by residents. It’s the blueprint for what the city can afford to do—and what has to wait.
So knowing how the budget gets built, and when the public can influence it, isn’t just for policy wonks. It’s for anyone who lives here.
Fayetteville passes its budget in June, but the work starts long before that. The process stretches across nearly a full year, moving from resident feedback to internal planning to public debate. To show how it all fits together, here are the key steps the city takes to build its annual budget.
Listen to Residents All Year
What this step is:
Fayetteville’s budget doesn’t begin with spreadsheets—it begins with people. Frontline employees act as the city’s early‑warning system: trash collectors hear about missed pickups and overflowing carts, police officers hear neighborhood safety concerns, recreation center staff hear about overcrowded programs, and transit drivers hear about late buses or missing shelters. This daily, ground‑level feedback becomes the city’s first and most important dataset.
Alongside that informal input, the city also builds in structured touchpoints throughout the year. Residents share what they’re seeing and experiencing at Coffee with the Mayor, Doug in the District pop‑up conversations with the city manager, Fayetteville Out Front sessions on topics like public services or doing business with the city, events such as the city manager’s visits to Greater Fayetteville Chamber breakfasts, and through citywide surveys.
Departments collect and relay all of this long before any formal budget work begins.
Terms to know
City Council: Fayetteville residents have nine City Council members, who represent nine districts, and a mayor. They are local elected officials, and they all vote. Here is how to contact them.
City Manager: The city manager is Doug Hewett. He is responsible for implementing the policy priorities of the City Council and proposes the annual budget to the council. He is not an elected official. Here is how to contact him.
Example:
During the winter of 2023-24, the city’s resident survey data showed the top two concerns were overall maintenance of city streets and overall quality of police protection.
Council translated that feedback into two of its top goals for the year:
- Goal 1: The City of Fayetteville will be a safe and secure community.
- Goal 3: The City of Fayetteville will be a city invested in today and tomorrow.
Those goals then shaped the actual spending plan. In the FY 2026 adopted budget, you can see the through‑line from resident comments to real dollars:
- $14.4 million dedicated to streets and sidewalks
- $114 million in community safety efforts
Can residents get involved?
Yes—this is the most organic and accessible point of influence.
If you talk to a city employee, you’re already participating.
Departments Build Their Requests (August–December)
What this step is:
This is the technical, behind‑the‑scenes start of the budget cycle—the part residents never see but that determines everything that comes later.
August: Budget staff update cost assumptions—inflation, salaries, benefits, fuel, utilities, contracts—and train every department on how to build their requests.
October–December: Departments dig into the substance:
- shifts in service demand
- operational needs
- what they’re hearing from residents
- what’s working—and what isn’t
They use this analysis to draft their formal budget requests.
Example
For FY 2026, departments brought two major issues to the table:
1. Rising inspection demand
The fire department reported that inspection requests were outpacing staff capacity.
Their request: more fire inspectors.
What happened: The adopted budget added $347,000 to hire additional inspectors.
2. Persistent vacancies during a national workforce shortage
Across departments, leaders flagged the same problem: Fayetteville was carrying a 10% to 12% vacancy rate, making it harder to maintain service levels.
Their request: stronger tools to recruit and retain employees.
What happened: The budget invested $4.6 million in employee compensation, including a 4% merit increase and a 1% boost to the city’s 401(k) contribution.
Can residents get involved?
Not directly—this is internal planning.
Council Sets Direction (January-February)
What this step is:
Each January or February, City Council holds its annual strategic planning retreat—the two-day meeting where councilmembers decide what the city should focus on in the coming year. Staff bring the data, residents’ concerns are already on the table, and council uses all of it to set the official priorities that the budget must follow.
These priorities become the goals in the Strategic Plan, and every department’s budget request has to align with them.
Example:
Starting February 4, City Council and senior staff met for their annual retreat. They reviewed:
- Community feedback gathered throughout the year
- Departmental needs identified during fall budget prep
- Performance data, including the second‑quarter progress report on FY 2026 priorities
Using that information, the council reaffirmed and refined its proposed priorities for FY27:
Proposed Strategic Goals
Goal 1 — Safe & Secure Community
Protecting people, neighborhoods, and daily safety.
Goal 2 — Economic & Strategic Growth
Jobs, tax base, land use, and smart growth — aligned in one goal area.
Goal 3 — Desirable Place to Live, Work & Recreate
The quality of life residents experience every day.
Goal 4 — Financially Sound City Providing Exemplary Services
How the City operates and sustains itself long‑term.
Goal 5 — Collaborative Citizen & Business Engagement
Building trust through partnerships and communication.
Councilmembers reached consensus on these priorities during the retreat. A formal vote—along with detailed action plans—will come at a future meeting.
City Manager Shapes Budget (February–April)
What this step is:
This is where the city’s priorities and constraints collide.
From February through April, the manager, budget office, and department directors meet to figure out what the city can realistically afford.
Most of Fayetteville’s budget is already spoken for before the public debate begins. Personnel costs for roughly 2,000 employees, debt payments, and the basic operation of core services like police, trash, transit, streets, and recreation centers make up an estimated 80% to 95% of spending.
The hard part: balancing it all.
Sometime in May, the city manager finalizes the recommended budget and presents it to the City Council—shifting the debate from staff to elected officials.
Example:
In the FY 2026 budget cycle, departments asked for $7.2 million in service‑enhancement requests that the city couldn’t fund. To keep the budget balanced without raising taxes, those items were deferred.
Some of the unfunded requests included:
- A new fire truck and the staff needed to operate it ($2.86 million)
- Two assistant city attorneys ($325,675)
- The restoration of pre-COVID transit routes ($499,937)
Can residents get involved?
Not directly—these meetings are private.
Council Digs into Budget Details
What this step is:
This year, on May 14 at 10 a.m., the city manager will present his proposed budget to the City Council, and the full document will be published on the city’s website the same day along with a Budget in Brief that summarizes where the money comes from and how it’s spent.
Once the budget is published, the public’s opportunity to weigh in becomes more structured: residents can read the document, contact council members, or reach out to staff with questions. That early feedback often shapes what council members choose to push for.
From there, the process moves into a series of council work sessions, where the real negotiation begins. Last year, the council held four of these sessions, using them to ask questions, debate priorities, request changes, and build out their “parking lot”—the running list of possible additions or adjustments they may want to fund. The Budget Office answers all written questions publicly through the Budget Chronicles, which are posted online for anyone to read.
On Monday, the city announced that the council will hold three work sessions on the budget at City Hall—Thursday, May 21, and May 28. All three sessions take place at 10 a.m.
Example:
Last year, after being presented with the recommended budget, the council added $6.2 million in new investment such as expanded public safety camera systems, neighborhood enhancements such as street signage, splash pads, and additional sidewalks.
Can you get involved?
Yes—indirectly.
Council members often bring resident concerns into these discussions.
Residents Get Their Say (Mid‑May)
What this step is:
State law requires the public hearing to take place at least 10 days after the city manager’s recommended budget is released, so it typically falls in mid‑May during a regular council meeting. This is the one moment each year when residents can speak directly and specifically about the proposed budget.
Turnout is historically low—often just a handful of speakers—unless a specific cause galvanizes supporters.
On Monday, the announced its public hearing about the budget is May 26 at 6:30 p.m. It will take place during the council’s regular meeting.
Example:
In 2023, supporters of Cape Fear Regional Theatre packed City Hall to ask for $2.5 million over five years, far above the staff‑recommended $250,000. After hearing that public push, council added the full request to the final budget.
Can you get involved?
Yes—this is the most direct opportunity for residents to shape the budget.
Council Finalizes Budget (Late June)
What this step is:
The budget process ends in late June, when the City Council takes a final vote on the upcoming fiscal year’s spending plan. By law, the council must adopt a balanced budget no later than June 30. The city’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30.
At the same meeting, councilmembers also adopt two companion documents that guide the city’s long‑term direction: the Capital and Technology Improvement Plan, which outlines major construction and infrastructure projects, and the Strategic Plan, which sets the city’s priorities for the year ahead.
Councilmembers discussed drafts of both documents at a special meeting on April 8.
Government reporter Rachel Heimann Mercader can be reached at rheimann@cityviewnc.com or 910-988-8045.
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