Wilmington City Council passes first reading of FY 2021-22 budget
By WECT Staff | June 1, 2021 at 9:08 PM EDT – Updated June 1 at 11:26 PM
WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) – The first reading of the FY 2021-22 budget was approved unanimously at a meeting of Wilmington City Council leaders Tuesday night.
In its current form, the new budget proposal includes a lower property tax rate. It also includes speeding up transportation projects, funding for the next phase of the Rail Realignment project, and investing in street rehabilitation programs and affordable housing efforts.
The lowering of the property tax rate from the current rate of 49.8 cents per $100 is to balance the increase in property values, creating a net neutral effect.
According to the City’s public information officer, net neutral for property owners would be a rate of 37.5 cents per $100. The proposed property tax rate of 38.08 cents per $100 will be “net neutral plus just over a half of one cent.”
Appropriations for a staff merit plan and council member compensation were also included in one of the four ordinances approved in the first reading.
The budget proposes a merit plan of 3% salary and benefits to enhance the City’s compensation plan and a 25% increase in stipend allocation to the Mayor and Council members.
SECTION XII: That City Council authorizes the appropriation of a 25% increase to the stipend allocations dedicated to the Mayor ($15,228 to $19,035) and Council Members ($11,592 to $14,490) upon the adoption of the FY22 budget.
The second reading and final vote will be held on June 15.
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