Jacksonville's $2B budget proposal heads to town halls across Duval County

Jacksonville residents will have eight opportunities over the next six weeks to weigh in on the city's proposed $2 billion budget for fiscal year 2026-2027, with town halls scheduled across Duval County beginning August 5. Mayor Donna Deegan announced the series of public meetings to discuss the spending plan, which prioritizes public safety, infrastructure, health, and housing initiatives.

The administration is positioning the proposal as a continuation of the city's economic momentum without additional tax burden on residents. The town halls require no advance registration and will take place at schools distributed across the consolidated city-county's geographic footprint, from Neptune Beach to the Westside.

What's happening

The proposed budget totals $2 billion for the fiscal year running from October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2027. According to the city's announcement, the plan does not include property tax rate increases.

Four priority areas anchor the spending proposal: public safety, infrastructure, health, and housing. The city has not released detailed line-item allocations in the town hall announcement, though the full budget document and Mayor Deegan's budget address are available at jacksonville.gov/budget.

Eight town halls are scheduled between August 5 and September 21, 2026. The meetings will run from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the following locations: Jean Ribault High School on the Northside (August 5), Julia Landon College Preparatory in Riverside (August 13), Duncan U. Fletcher High School in Neptune Beach (August 19), Mandarin High School in South Jacksonville (August 27), Ortega Elementary in Ortega (September 1), Terry Parker High School in Arlington (September 8), First Coast High School on the Westside (September 15), and Edward H. White High School near the Northside (September 21).

The City Council will ultimately vote on the budget. Under Jacksonville's consolidated government structure, the council serves as the legislative body for most of Duval County and must approve the annual spending plan before the fiscal year begins October 1.

What it means for city services and operations

The budget's four stated priorities reflect areas where residents have consistently voiced concerns and where the city faces long-standing infrastructure deficits and service gaps.

Public safety funding typically represents the largest portion of Jacksonville's general fund budget, covering the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department, and related emergency services. How the proposed budget allocates resources among patrol staffing, equipment, fire station operations, and emergency medical services will determine service levels across the city's 747 square miles. Residents in high-call-volume neighborhoods on the Northside, Westside, and urban core neighborhoods have raised response-time concerns in recent budget cycles.

Infrastructure investment shapes the quality of roads, drainage, parks, and public facilities. Jacksonville has a well-documented backlog of deferred road resurfacing, stormwater system upgrades needed to address chronic flooding in older neighborhoods, and park maintenance needs. The extent to which this budget advances those projects—and which corridors or districts receive priority—will emerge from the detailed capital improvement program within the full budget document. Infrastructure spending decisions also determine how the city prepares for continued growth pressure along the I-295 beltway, the Southside, and near Cecil Commerce Center.

What it means for housing and health initiatives

Housing affordability has become a defining issue for Northeast Florida as rapid population growth strains rental and for-sale inventory. How the city budget addresses housing could take several forms: funding for the city's affordable housing trust fund, support for homelessness services and shelter capacity, land banking for future affordable projects, or incentives for workforce housing development. The allocation level and program design will indicate how aggressively the city is responding to a regional housing shortage that has pushed rents and home prices beyond the reach of service workers, teachers, and young families.

Health spending in a municipal budget typically funds the county health department (Duval County operates its health department in partnership with the state Department of Health), mental health and substance abuse services, and health-related grants. For Jacksonville, this category may also include funding related to public health infrastructure, community health worker programs, or initiatives addressing maternal and infant mortality disparities that have drawn national attention to Duval County.

The decision to pursue these priorities without raising property tax rates means the city is relying on existing revenue sources—property tax collections boosted by rising property values, sales tax receipts, state revenue sharing, utility taxes, and other fees. If property values have risen substantially over the past year, the city can generate more revenue at the same millage rate, a dynamic that allows budget growth without a rate increase but still results in higher tax bills for homeowners whose assessments climbed.

What it means for residents and public input

The town hall schedule distributes meetings across the city's major quadrants, placing forums in the Northside (Ribault and Terry Parker high schools), urban core (Julia Landon), Beaches (Fletcher), Southside (Mandarin), Riverside/Ortega (Ortega Elementary), Westside (First Coast and White high schools), and Arlington (Terry Parker area). The geographic spread is designed to give residents in all parts of the consolidated city-county access to a nearby meeting.

Town halls offer residents the opportunity to ask questions about spending priorities, raise concerns about service levels in their neighborhoods, and advocate for resources. In past budget cycles, residents have used these forums to press for road repaving in neglected areas, increased code enforcement, park improvements, and flood mitigation projects. The feedback gathered at town halls does not bind the council but provides the administration and council members a public temperature check on budget trade-offs.

The venues—primarily high school auditoriums—can accommodate large crowds. No registration requirement lowers the barrier to participation, though it also means attendees should arrive early if seating is limited. Residents who cannot attend in person can review the budget materials online and submit written comments through the city's budget website or directly to council members.

What happens next

The first town hall takes place August 5 at Jean Ribault High School. The remaining seven meetings follow at roughly weekly intervals through September 21, giving the administration more than six weeks to collect public input before the fiscal year begins October 1.

The City Council will hold public hearings on the budget in September, as required by Florida law. Council committees typically review the budget in detail during August and early September, focusing on their areas of jurisdiction—finance, neighborhoods, public safety, and infrastructure. The council must adopt a final budget and set the millage rate before October 1. Under state law, the council holds two public hearings on the proposed millage rate and budget, advertised in advance, before taking a final vote.

Residents can view the full proposed budget, watch or read Mayor Deegan's budget address, and explore budget highlights at jacksonville.gov/budget. The site typically includes searchable line-item detail, department narratives, and capital project lists. Council members' contact information is available on the city's website for residents who want to communicate directly with their representatives.

The budget process unfolds as Jacksonville continues to navigate a period of rapid growth and change across Northeast Florida. How the city allocates $2 billion in public resources—and whether those investments keep pace with a population approaching one million in Duval County and a metro area expanding into St. Johns, Clay, and Nassau counties—will shape service delivery, infrastructure capacity, and quality of life for years beyond this two-year budget cycle.