Boston City Budget: $35.8M of $100M Overtime Spent in 3 Months, Report Shows

Boston spent $35.8 million on overtime in the first three months of fiscal 2027, or 36% of its $100.1 million overtime budget, according to the city’s first-quarter budget status report dated Nov. 2. The report, covering July 1 through Sept. 30, 2026, was filed with the Boston City Council for its Wednesday, Nov. 4 meeting, according to the council’s meeting agenda. The first quarter is 25% of the fiscal year.

Overall, the Office of Budget Management said the city has recognized $2.08 billion, or 42%, of its $4.942 billion revenue estimate and spent or encumbered $1.589 billion, or 32%, of appropriations. The city “expects FY27 to be broadly consistent with the Adopted Budget,” the report says.

Boston city budget: the overtime picture

The Police Department has spent 34% of its $55.6 million overtime appropriation and the Fire Department 36% of its $34.4 million, according to the report in the council’s meeting packet. The report says both departments “have made efforts to reduce hours while still fulfilling public safety needs” but notes that “these appropriations have been historically overspent.” State law and the city charter allow police and fire to end the year in deficit, with the gap covered by surplus revenue or other savings.

The steeper percentages are in smaller departments. Public Works has used $1.4 million of $2.4 million, or 61%, and Parks $0.7 million of $1.2 million, or 57%. The budget office said Parks, Public Works and Property Management “are also likely to face overtime cost overruns.” Unlike public safety departments, the report says, those departments “do not have statutory authority to overspend,” so overtime shortfalls must be covered by cutting regular payroll spending, which “has created significant service delivery pressure.”

Utilities, fuel, snow and court judgments

The report flags several other pressure points. Utility spending “is at high risk of exceeding allocated budget limits,” with 18% of the annual utilities budget committed through August billing. Gasoline and diesel budgets “face a high risk of deficit,” with 69% already obligated because of high per-gallon costs. Overspending in both must be covered by savings elsewhere in departmental budgets.

The city has encumbered 52% of its $22.7 million snow and winter management budget ahead of winter. After what the report calls “unprecedented winter operational costs in FY26,” the budget office said it is coordinating with the Streets Cabinet on decisions around snow emergencies; residents can review the city’s snow emergency parking rules.

The Execution of Courts line, which pays legal judgments and settlements, was zeroed out in the fiscal 2027 budget. It has already paid $3.2 million and is “operating at a deficit,” the report says. It is one of three accounts, with public safety overtime and snow removal, that state law allows to end the year in deficit.

By the numbers: revenue and spending after one quarter

Source: City of Boston FY27 Q1 Annual Operating Budget Status Report, Table 1.

Front-loaded payments drive the spending percentages: pensions and retiree health (OPEB) were paid at the start of the year, while debt service follows a set schedule. Property tax, at 49% collected, is billed in July and December and has a historic collection rate of 99%, according to the report. By a Boston Report calculation, overtime equals about 2% of the $4.942 billion operating budget, and the $35.8 million spent in the first quarter would reach about $143 million over a full year at the same pace. The city has not made that projection, and overtime varies by season.

The fiscal 2027 budget included a 20.3% estimated rate increase for non-Medicare employee health plans, and health insurance is tracking within budget, the report says. The city will update its $40 million new-growth estimate in the second-quarter report, due in January 2027. For a line-by-line view of the full budget, see our guide to where Boston’s $4.9 billion goes in fiscal 2027.

Also on the council’s Nov. 4 agenda

The same packet includes responses to council information requests on White Stadium costs, including a guaranteed maximum price summary listing a total construction cost of $135,035,515.62 for the East Grandstand renovation; WBUR reported in February that the $135 million figure was nearly three times an earlier estimate. The agenda also lists a $787,501 supplemental appropriation for a Boston Public Schools custodians’ contract, about $2.2 million in grants, including $798,000 from MassDOT for microtransit and e-bike subsidies, and a resolution asking the School Committee to postpone its Dec. 2 vote on closing Charlestown High School. Votes are tracked on our City Hall decisions tracker.

Sources

• Boston City Council: Nov. 4, 2026 meeting details and agenda (Legistar)
• Boston City Council: Nov. 4, 2026 meeting packet, including the FY27 Q1 Annual Operating Budget Status Report
• City of Boston: Budget office
• WBUR: White Stadium renovation cost estimate