How Norfolk is run
Who runs Norfolk, what it costs, and where your money goes
The city manager, council pay, the budget, your property tax bill and who provides each service, from Norfolk's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Norfolk
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The council sets policy, adopts the budget and sets the tax rate.
What they are paid
Norfolk city staff
5,127 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police 851, Fire-Rescue 596, Human Services 472, Sheriff and Jail 417, Norfolk Community Services Board 295. FY2026-27. City of Norfolk · Jul 1, 2026
The city's open data portal publishes base salary for city employees by job title and department, updated daily. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Norfolk in the red?
Cities must pass a balanced budget, so "profit" and "deficit" mean something different here. The useful questions: does the city's everyday money (the general fund) cover its everyday costs, how much does it keep in savings compared with its own target, and how big are its pension and debt bills.
The city's own outlook
The city prepares a long-term forecast each year but did not present it at the fall financial update. The internal forecast flagged the delayed Norfolk casino, rising pay, benefit and debt costs, and the possible use of one-time funds to bridge the budget deficit. The adopted budget includes no tax rate increases. City of Norfolk · Jul 1, 2026
Savings
Unassigned general fund balance: $97.7M (2025-06-30). City of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
Why we skip the "budgeted deficit": many cities plan to dip into savings, then spend less than planned. The audited result tells you what really happened.
Where the money comes from and goes
The general fund only: the city's everyday money for FY2026-27.
Comes from
- General property taxes$463M · 37%
- State categorical aid$367M · 30%
- Other local taxes (sales, meals, business license, lodging and others)$211M · 17%
- State non-categorical aid$42.4M · 3%
- Other sources and transfers in$35.2M · 3%
- Charges for services$32M · 3%
- State shared expenses$30.3M · 2%
- Other$62.3M · 5%
Goes to (FY2026-27)
- Norfolk Public Schools (city budget for schools)$466M · 37%
- Public safety (police, fire-rescue, emergency management)$173M · 14%
- Debt service$114M · 9%
- Public health and assistance$96.3M · 8%
- General management (finance, IT, general services, HR)$80.8M · 7%
- Constitutional officers (sheriff and jail, prosecutor, treasurer and others)$76.1M · 6%
- Central and outside agency appropriations$70.8M · 6%
- Parks, recreation and culture$68.3M · 5%
- Other$96.9M · 8%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Norfolk is an independent city with sole local taxing power within its boundaries, so there are no county or school district taxes. Property in the Downtown Improvement District pays $1.39.
100¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Norfolk
- City of Norfolk (general rate)1.23 · 100%
- Total ($ per $100 of assessed value)1.23
FY2026-27 real estate tax rate for a property in Norfolk (an independent city). City of Norfolk · Jul 1, 2026
See what a Norfolk house pays, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Norfolk is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityNorfolk Police DepartmentCity of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- FireThe cityNorfolk Fire-RescueCity of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- Emergency medical servicesThe cityNorfolk Fire-Rescue (paramedical services)City of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- 911 dispatchThe cityPolice Department Emergency 911 DivisionCity of Norfolk · Jul 1, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity of Norfolk water utilityCity of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- SewerThe cityCity of Norfolk wastewater utilityCity of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- Trash and recyclingThe cityCity of NorfolkCity of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- StormwaterThe cityCity of NorfolkCity of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of NorfolkCity of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- Parks and recreationThe cityCity of NorfolkCity of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- LibrariesThe cityCity of NorfolkCity of Norfolk · Jan 26, 2026
- Public transitAnother agencyHampton Roads Transit (bus, light rail, ferry)City of Norfolk · Jul 1, 2026
Compared with similar cities
The cities in this state closest in population that we cover. Read it for scale, not as a ranking: cities provide different services.
| Per city | HamptonVA | Newport NewsVA | NorfolkVA | ChesapeakeVA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 137,315 | 183,230 | 231,013 | 255,332 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | $292,272 | $320,923 | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | $43,000 | $47,000 | $25,000 | $25,000 |
| General fund per resident | $5,161 | $3,708 | $5,378 | $3,594 |
| Debt per resident | $2,547 | $2,466 | $5,801 | $2,768 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $922 | $2,245 | $1,035 | $594 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 16.6 | 41.1 | 22.2 | 15.7 |
Figures as shown in each city's section, divided by its population. Years differ by state, and pension figures are measured differently in each state (each city page says how).
What Norfolk publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe adopted FY2027 budget is posted in full and by section, with the budget ordinances. City of Norfolk
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineThe City Manager's page and the budget do not post an employment agreement. The open data salary list shows the base pay. City of Norfolk
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member online City of Norfolk · Jul 8, 2025
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public document City of Norfolk · May 12, 2026
- Yes: Employee pay published City of Norfolk Open Data
Questions to ask your council
- Council voted to raise mayor pay from $27,000 to $51,000 and council pay from $25,000 to $47,000 from July 1, 2027. How does that compare with peer Virginia cities?
- Norfolk Public Schools receives $465.8M of the $1.24B general fund budget in FY2026-27. How is the city's share for schools set each year?
- General fund debt service is $114.2M in FY2026-27 and bonded debt was $1.34B at June 30, 2025. How much new borrowing does the capital plan add?
The fiscal year starts July 1. The City Manager submitted the proposed FY2027 budget on March 24, 2026. Council adopted the operating budget ordinance on May 12, 2026 and the capital plan on May 19, 2026. See who is running for council
Help decide what comes next
What do you want to know about Norfolk next?
One tap, no sign-in. We count answers; we never show who chose what.
Every number here was checked by hand against the linked document. Cities publish on different schedules, so years differ between sections; each figure says which year it describes. Spotted something wrong or out of date?
See something wrong? Report an error
Something wrong or missing? Tell us what and where, with a link to a source if you have one. Reports feed the next verification run.