The Mount Vernon City Council voted Thursday evening to adopt the 2026 proposed city budget.

In addition to adopting the budget, the council also passed a measure to override the 2% state tax cap. Thursday's special meeting lasted less than 10 minutes.

"I took off work early, came over here and by the time I got my coat off, it was over," said Mount Vernon resident Clarence Storms.

The City Council held a public hearing on Dec. 16 at 6 p.m. to talk about the budget. It was a packed house.

Thursday's meeting was a different story. There were only a few people in attendance as the meeting was held at 4:30 p.m. Residents told News 12 that they were still at work, so they were unable to attend.

"It's the middle of the day when nobody else can attend. This is by design," said Axel Ebermann, a Mount Vernon resident.

"There's no right time to do your meetings. There's always going to be someone upset, that's the unfortunate part," said Councilman Derrick Thompson, when asked why the meeting was held so early.

The spending plan will lead to a 5.47% property tax hike. While that is a little less than the original 6.09% increase, residents say it's still too high.

"It's incredibly frustrating to work your whole life to save up money to buy a home and finally, the American dream, just to have it crushed," said Storms.

Another resident, Susan Emilio, has lived in Mount Vernon since 1968. She says that her taxes keep going up, yet she doesn't know where that money is going.

"The money that's being spent in Mount Vernon on things, it's like they're playing with Monopoly money. It's not real money," said Emilio.

Thompson said that every elected official who manages the city actually lives within the city as well, so this increase doesn't just affect everyone else, it affects officials as well.

City officials say the increase is needed to pay for added expenses, including $4 million for union contract obligations.

Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard was not at Thursday's meeting. News 12 reached out to the mayor for comment, but did not hear back.