Nashville's Metro Council has passed a $3.8 billion budget for fiscal year 2026, which includes a property tax levy set at a rate of $2.81 per $100 of assessed value. This rate, although lower than the previous, will see many homeowners paying more due to increased property values. The decision, made on Tuesday night, favored Council Member At Large Delishia Porterfield’s substitute budget over the original proposal by Mayor Freddie O’Connell, as reported by WSMV.
Under Porterfield’s budget, city employees are set to receive a 2 percent wage increase, marking a higher raise compared to the 1 percent offered in the mayor's initial proposal. According to WSMV, Porterfield argued that competitive wages esnure that "other industries will have to raise their pay in order to recruit and retain employees." The budget also provides additional funds to maternal health programs, after-school initiatives like NAZA, and support for unhoused youth and teens through the Oasis Center.
The Nashville Banner detailed additional aspects of the passed budget, such as support for emergency food programs and a $100,000 exploration into "additional public-private housing partnerships." Further changes by the Council amended approximately a quarter of a percent of the mayor’s spending plan, shifting monies from administrative and contingency accounts rather than altering departmental allocations. These amendments included provisions for domestic violence gun dispossession detective and the Music City Construction Careers program, among others, as Nashville Banner reported.
Despite supporting the final budget, some residents have expressed concern over the property tax burden. Jason Weakley, chairman of the Davidson County Republican Party, told NewsChannel5, "We're treated as a piggy bank that's bottomless, and we're not, you know, our wages are not really going up. So, if everyone's hitting us, and then our government's hitting us, we're, you know, people are tapped out. So, we're just asking for some relief." Mayor O'Connell, however, emphasized the budget's commitment to delivering quality services, noting that "School performance is up" and that "Crime is down," as mentioned in a statement shared by NewsChannel5.
The approved budget ultimately saw a 32-6 vote in its favor, with the understanding that a failure to pass this council-led budget would default to the mayor's original proposal with the same tax rate. With the new fiscal year beginning on July 1, the budget is set to fully fund city services, including education, emergency responders, and infrastructure improvements, as previously articulated by Council Member Porterfield to WSMV.
