The City Council approved the proposed 2023 fiscal budget and property tax rate on Tuesday. The $2.3 billion budget is approximately $2.5 million more than 2022 + focuses on public safety, cleanliness, and growth.
There’s a lot to unpack in the 248-page operating budget that will be active from Sat., Oct. 1, 2022-Sat., Sept. 30, 2023, but we’re here to holler out the highlights.
By the numbers
The city’s operational budget comes from six sources—three governmental funds and three proprietary funds.
- General fund: $915.3 million
- Debt service fund: $278.4 million
- Special revenue funds: $228.8 million
- Enterprise funds: $668.1 million
- Internal service funds: $200.3 million
- Fiduciary funds: $33.7 million
- Total operating funds: $2.3 billion
Funding for police and fire accounts for over half of the general fund.
Graphic by the City of Fort Worth
The general fund
The general fund increased by $83.4 million compared to 2022 and includes money for 150+ new city staff positions in various departments. With strategic priorities for safety and cleanliness, infrastructure, growth, workforce, and tax rate reduction; the general fund breaks down as:
- $491.3 million for public safety
- $180.6 million for infrastructure
- $97.6 million for financial growth
- $83.1 million for community services
- $7.9 million for legal services
- $41.2 million for other expenses
Changes for residents
The council has approved a decreased property tax rate of $0.7125 per $100. This is 2% less than last year.
Note: Property tax amount is calculated as
Property tax amount = (tax rate x taxable value of your property)/100
The city also approved an increased environmental fee on monthly water bills by $1 to accommodate more trash and litter removal.
A line-by-line breakdown doesn’t quite fit in your quick morning news. You can check out the full budget report from the city.