Overview
Tuscaloosa’s adopted General Fund budget for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2027 anticipates revenue of $234,578,453 and appropriates exactly the same amount, $234,578,453 — a balanced adopted budget on its face. Taxes are the largest anticipated source at $120,534,812 (51.4% of anticipated revenue). Public Safety is by far the largest appropriation at $91,369,695 (39.0% of appropriations), followed by Construction, Facilities & Grounds at $16,768,032 and Debt Service at $16,893,137. The ordinance also estimates about $13,087,102 for services in the police jurisdiction outside the corporate limits, against about $8,714,633 in licenses collected in the police jurisdiction.
At a glance
Source: City of Tuscaloosa, Ordinance OCA-25-1154 and the FY2027 budget presentation for the operating total only.
Revenues
Anticipated sources of revenue in the adopted General Fund ordinance re-add exactly to the printed total: $120,534,812 + $30,712,980 + $2,388,716 + $333,757 + $4,138,952 + $26,963,147 + $12,343,539 + $27,359,555 + $9,802,995 = $234,578,453.
| Anticipated source | Amount |
|---|---|
| Taxes | $120,534,812 |
| Licenses and Permits | $30,712,980 |
| Fines and Penalties | $2,388,716 |
| Use of Property | $333,757 |
| Charges for Services | $4,138,952 |
| Intergovernmental Revenues | $26,963,147 |
| Other Operating | $12,343,539 |
| Transfers from Other Funds | $27,359,555 |
| Cost Reimbursements | $9,802,995 |
| Total anticipated revenue | $234,578,453 |
Source: City of Tuscaloosa, Ordinance OCA-25-1154, “Anticipated Sources of Revenue”.
Appropriations
Appropriations in the adopted ordinance also re-add exactly to $234,578,453. Public Safety alone is $91,369,695 — more than five times the next-largest departmental appropriation (Construction, Facilities & Grounds, $16,768,032).
| Appropriation | Amount |
|---|---|
| Accounting and Finance | $6,270,947 |
| Airport | $1,178,310 |
| Arts & Entertainment | $5,267,464 |
| Community & Neighborhood Services | $1,061,148 |
| Construction, Facilities & Grounds | $16,768,032 |
| Council | $732,148 |
| Environmental Services | $13,576,008 |
| Human Resources | $4,047,965 |
| Information Technology | $10,817,038 |
| Municipal Court | $2,090,976 |
| Office of Operations | $2,021,872 |
| Office of the City Attorney | $3,218,300 |
| Office of the City Engineer | $2,691,325 |
| Office of the Mayor | $1,025,193 |
| Office of Urban Development | $4,923,228 |
| Public Safety | $91,369,695 |
| Public Works | $12,934,654 |
| Strategic Communications | $1,673,691 |
| Transfer to Other Funds | $7,923,459 |
| Debt Service | $16,893,137 |
| Cost Sharing Arrangements | $2,311,405 |
| Other Operating | $9,512,848 |
| Special Projects | $1,000,000 |
| Agencies | $14,544,610 |
| Contingencies | $725,000 |
| Total appropriations | $234,578,453 |
Source: City of Tuscaloosa, Ordinance OCA-25-1154, “Appropriations”.
Context & gaps
Operating total (presentation figure, not ordinance figure): the City’s FY2027 budget presentation gives an operating-budget total of $356,748,779, made up of General Fund $234,578,453 + Elevate Tuscaloosa Fund $31,069,907 + Water and Sewer Fund $91,100,419. That breakdown re-adds exactly ($234,578,453 + $31,069,907 + $91,100,419 = $356,748,779). The Elevate and Water and Sewer figures are presentation figures only — they are not taken from adopted ordinance texts on this page, and no departmental breakdown of those two funds is shown here.
Major discretionary revenues (presentation figure, not ordinance figure): the same presentation lists FY2027 major discretionary revenues totaling $163,257,000, against $155,357,000 in FY2026 — sales tax $48,600,000; use tax $6,571,000; use tax–internet (SSUT) $11,577,000; ad valorem tax $25,771,000; liquor tax $4,163,000; lodging tax $12,708,000; dwelling tax $4,827,000; business license $26,103,000; county sales tax $22,937,000. These lines re-add exactly to $163,257,000, but they are a presentation subset of the ordinance’s broader “Taxes” and “Licenses and Permits” lines — do not add them to the ordinance totals.
Scope gap: the retrieved packet contains the General Fund ordinance in full, but the full FY2027 budget book, the adopted Elevate and Water and Sewer ordinances, and the Council minutes recording the adoption vote were not retrieved. Disclosure — adoption-meeting date unknown: the adoption-meeting date is not stated in the retrieved excerpt and is not claimed anywhere on this page; September 22, 2026 was the Finance Committee presentation date only. Disclosure — mayoral proposal not used: August 2026 news coverage of the Mayor’s FY2027 proposal is proposal-only and was not used for any figure here.
Police jurisdiction: the ordinance estimates approximately $13,087,102 for services in the police jurisdiction and approximately $8,714,633 in licenses collected there; if year-end license revenue from the police jurisdiction exceeds the cost of services there, the ordinance directs a refund or credit under City Code Section 7-5.
Sources: Ordinance OCA-25-1154; City of Tuscaloosa FY2027 budget presentation (Operating Budget Overview and Major Discretionary Revenues slides).
Sources & notes
- Source used: City of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Ordinance OCA-25-1154, “Adopting General Fund Budget for FY 2027,” in the Council Finance Committee agenda packet, Tuesday, September 22, 2026 (item 16, pages 16–18), on the City’s official agenda system Read the source document.
- Sum checks: revenues $120,534,812 + $30,712,980 + $2,388,716 + $333,757 + $4,138,952 + $26,963,147 + $12,343,539 + $27,359,555 + $9,802,995 = $234,578,453; appropriations (25 lines, above) = $234,578,453; presentation operating total $234,578,453 + $31,069,907 + $91,100,419 = $356,748,779; presentation discretionary revenues = $163,257,000.
- Identity: the ordinance is headed “BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA” — this is the City of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, seat of Tuscaloosa County. It is not the Tuscaloosa County Commission (separate government; county dashboard reserved as tuscaloosacounty.html and not built here) and not Trussville or any other city.
- Adoption-date disclosure: adoption is asserted by the ordinance text itself (“hereby adopted … for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2027”); the date of the adoption meeting is not stated in the retrieved excerpt and is shown as unknown on this page. Re-check route: City Council minutes, September 2026, for the adoption date and the full budget book.
- Jurisdiction palette: site-derived — the City of Tuscaloosa official site (tuscaloosa.com) carries theme-color #dbc553; this page’s gold accent follows that site meta value, with a darker gold for light mode. Provenance: tuscaloosa.com theme-color meta, checked October 24, 2026.
- Photo: Denny Chimes and the Quad, Tuscaloosa, Alabama — Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress (public domain, No known restrictions on publication).