By Delayna Earley
The Island News
Beaufort’s City Council has passed a $73 million budget for 2026 with a 3-2 split vote after a councilman proposed cutting $77,000 from the budget last minute during the June 10 City Council meeting.
In the proposed budget, the city tax rate is not increasing, and the overall millage will remain flat at 73.9 mills.
The city will, whoever, collect $370,000 in additional taxes because the single mill value is increasing by $5,431 to $131,885 because of the value and number of properties that have been improved or added since 2025.
The $7.5 million budget increase is expected to be offset by the projected increases in business license revenue of $1.1 million and additional property taxes due to growth.
The annual garbage collection fee, with is currently set at $270, for residents will not increase even though there was a $75,000 increase in the city’s contract with its hauler.
The City is allotting $28.5 million for 15 projects in 2026, including $21 million to fix stormwater drainage issues at Charles and Craven Streets, Port Republic and Carteret Streets and King Street; $250,000 to study the underground infrastructure at Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park to try and stabilize it; and $2.2 million for improvements to Washington, Southside and a new Boundary Street park meant to honor the 1st South Carolina Volunteers who were the first Black troops to fight for the Union during the Civil War.
City employees will also get a 3% cost-of-living adjustment that will begin on July 1 in addition to a one-time merit-based bonus of up 2.5%.
The city is also doing a compensation study that may recommend additional increases, so to prepare for that the city is setting aside money to possibly implement an additional 2.7% pay increase if it is found to be necessary.
During discussions about the budget, Councilman Josh Scallate moved to amend the budget by cutting $77,000 from the budget.
Scallate cited concerns about three spending priorities and fiscal responsibility when proposing the amendment.
The cuts proposed by Scallate included $42,000 in the budget for the Beaufort County Economic Development Corp. (BCEDC), $30,000 for a downtown master plan and a $5,000 contribution for a statewide nursing retention initiative.
Beaufort Mayor Phil Cromer agreed with Scallate on cutting the money from the BCEDC and voted with him to not pass the budget. Cromer serves on the BCEDC board of directors.
Councilmen Mitch Mitchell, Mike McFee and Neil Lipsitz disagreed with Scallate and voted in support of passing the budget, ultimately leading to its approval.
Delayna Earley, who joined The Island News in 2022, formerly worked as a photojournalist for The Island Packet/The Beaufort Gazette, as well as newspapers in Indiana and Virginia. She can be reached at delayna.theislandnews@gmail.com.
