Elon’s town manager has unveiled a proposed budget that would add 5 cents (or 14.3 percent) to the town’s property tax rate in order to cover an anticipated increase in spending that barely exceeds half a percentage point.
Town manager Richard Roedner conceded that this prospective spending plan is still a work in progress when he shared the details with Elon’s town council on Monday.
Roedner added that, as things currently stand, the town’s general fund will need something on the order of $13.9 million to maintain existing services and cover the council’s foremost priorities for the financial cycle that starts on July 1, 2026. He went on to advise the council to limit its allocation of savings to pay for these outlays. He recommended, instead, that the council hike the towns’ property tax rate from 35 to 40 cents for $100 of value – a potential jump of nearly 14.3 percent.
Roedner acknowledged that, in previous years, the town has relied on the general fund’s financial reserves to bankroll far more ambitious spending proposals without the need for such precipitous spikes in the tax rate. He added, however, the town has reached a point where it can no longer depend on its piggy bank to offset other sources of revenue…