Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan lays out $3 billion budget proposal
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan presented his budget for the 2026 fiscal year, which will begin on July 1, 2025.
Duggan is proposing an 8.7% overall increase in spending, which includes a $3 million reduction in debt millage and a reduction in property taxes for Detroiters. This is a big difference from his first budget proposal 12 years ago.
"I am in front of you for the twelfth time, and for the twelfth time, I am presenting a balanced budget for the City of Detroit," Duggan said.
Duggan is finishing his term as mayor with a 12th consecutive balanced budget since the city exited bankruptcy in 2013. This proposal totals over $1.5 billion for general fund activities and over $3 billion across all city funds for the coming fiscal year. Duggan is crediting the city's growth and investment over the past few years as to why he's able to propose property tax relief for Detroit homeowners which would, for example, save a homeowner with a $100,000 valued home $150 in property taxes. He explained how income tax collections are what's driving this possibility.
"That $150 million difference in income tax collections is the reason we could give officers $10,000 raises and add 330 cops," he said. "It's the reason why our parks look so beautiful; it's the reason why our ambulances are showing up in 7 and a half minutes. These are the services."
The budget also includes a $20 million budget increase for the city's Department of Transportation and a 40% increase in funding for homelessness prevention. Some Detroit residents attended the budget proposal for public comment, and while many have lauded Duggan for his time in office, there were Detroiters asking for more.
"If you live downtown and midtown and you are a fan of all of the economic development, you love it, and I think Mayor Duggan's message to City Council resonated with you but I think if you are kind of outside of those boundaries you see it a little bit different you don't feel all of the benefits," said resident Theo Pride.
The third-term mayor's budget blueprint also leaves nearly $500 million in reserves and provides $4.4 million to continue the Community Violence Intervention.
Duggan said on Friday that on the day of his first budget presentation, half the street lights were out, the parks were all closed, the ambulances didn't show up for an hour and a half, and 47 thousand abandoned houses were in the city. He said it was a city that didn't have a lot of hope, it is very different today.
