In the final hours, the Dallas City Council approved the largest budget in the city’s history, which the city said focuses on “investing in priority programs and people.”

Dallas City Council voted 11–3 to approve the new budget, with Mayor Eric Johnson, Mayor Pro Tem Jesse Moreno, and Council Member Cara Mendelsohn voting against it. The $5.2 billion budget promises to lower tax rates for residents, but Johnson said it doesn’t deliver meaningful tax relief, and Mendelsohn agreed.

Critics say relief falls short

“I’m not surprised,” Mendelsohn said. “It’s another budget that passed that probably shouldn’t have.”

On Thursday, Johnson wasn’t available for an interview but sent a statement saying in part, “The result is a bloated budget that fails to provide much-needed tax relief for Dallas residents. The newly created committee on government efficiency now faces the crucial task of identifying and eliminating waste at City Hall wherever it can be found.”

Public safety gets major funding

The approved budget allocates millions more to public safety, including funding to hire 350 additional police recruits and raise starting officer salaries to more than $81,000 per year. It also sets aside money to improve streets and roadways.

However, the tax rate decrease is minimal—about 50 cents per $100 valuation.

Concerns over competitiveness and spending

“And when you look around the Metroplex, you see we have a much higher tax rate, and it’s incumbent upon us to do the work to make sure that we are competitive, and that our city remains affordable for both our businesses and residents,” Mendelsohn said.

While public safety funding increased, Mendelsohn said she had hoped to see $4.2 million set aside for additional pay for police and fire officers, but that proposal didn’t pass. She believes cuts could have come from departments like human resources.

Library closure and other cuts

“We are charged with taking money from people, and we have to make sure we’re spending it in a careful and deliberate way that produces the results that we were asked to do, and I know this budget doesn’t do that,” she said.

The budget also includes several cuts, including the closure of the Skillman Southwestern Branch Library in northeast Dallas and the elimination of funding for state lobbyists.

The budget is set to take effect Oct. 1.