Budget offices in Massachusetts work mostly at the city and town level. If you want to know how your community plans to spend money in the year that starts on July 1, you will usually be dealing with a local finance office, not a county one. Our database currently lists two such offices: the Boston Budget Department in Suffolk County and the Cambridge Budget Department in Middlesex County.

This page explains how those offices fit into the wider system, what rules govern them, and how to get answers from them without wasting a trip.

How Massachusetts Cities and Towns Build and Pass Their Annual Budgets

All 351 Massachusetts cities and towns run on a fiscal year that begins July 1 and ends June 30. The calendar is predictable, which helps if you want to take part.

In most places the cycle follows the same steps. Department heads submit requests in the fall or winter. The mayor, city manager, or town administrator turns those requests into a proposed budget. A legislative body then votes on it before the new year starts.

That legislative body differs by community. Cities use a city council. Most towns still use open town meeting, where registered voters gather and vote on the budget themselves. Some larger towns use a representative town meeting, where elected members vote on behalf of their precincts.

Many towns also have a finance committee, sometimes called an advisory committee, that reviews the budget and recommends action to town meeting. If the budget is not in place by July 1, state law allows a temporary spending plan of one-twelfth of the prior year's appropriation for each month.

This is why timing matters. The best moment to influence a budget is before the vote, during the departmental hearings and finance committee meetings of winter and spring, not at the meeting where the total is already settled.

State Law, the Division of Local Services, and Proposition 2½

Municipal budgeting follows state statute. Chapter 44 of the Massachusetts General Laws is the Municipal Finance Law, and Chapter 59 covers property taxation. City charters and town bylaws add local detail on who prepares the budget and who may change it.

The state body that supports local finance officers is the Division of Local Services, part of the Department of Revenue. It approves local property tax rates, certifies free cash, issues guidance, and trains local officials. Its Municipal Databank lets anyone compare revenues, spending, and tax rates across communities.

The most important limit is Proposition 2½, approved by voters in 1980. It works in two ways:

A community can go beyond those limits only if its voters agree at the ballot. An override raises the limit permanently. A debt exclusion or capital exclusion raises it temporarily for a named project. When a budget office mentions an override, it is describing a ballot question that voters decide.

State spending runs on a separate track. The Executive Office for Administration and Finance prepares the governor's annual budget proposal, which is filed in January. The House and Senate Committees on Ways and Means then draft their own versions before the General Appropriations Act is passed. Local aid, including Chapter 70 education aid, flows to cities and towns from that process, so local budget offices often wait for state figures before finalizing their own numbers.

Boston and Cambridge: Two Budget Offices With Different Governments

Boston Budget Department in Suffolk County

The Boston Budget Department is located at 600 Washington Street in Boston, and its listed phone number is 617-348-8430. Boston has a strong-mayor form of government. The mayor proposes the budget, and the City Council reviews it, holds hearings, and votes. Boston Public Schools are funded through the city's appropriation, so school spending is part of the same budget debate.

Boston sits in Suffolk County, which also includes Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop. Those cities run their own budgets, so a Chelsea resident should go to Chelsea City Hall rather than to Boston's office.

Cambridge Budget Department in Middlesex County

The Cambridge Budget Department is at 795 Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge, phone 617-349-4270. Cambridge uses a council-manager form of government. The nine-member City Council sets policy and adopts the budget, while the city manager prepares and submits it. Cambridge has also run a participatory budgeting process, in which residents vote on how to spend part of the capital budget. Ask the office whether a new cycle is open.

Cambridge is in Middlesex County, the state's most populous county, which includes Lowell, Newton, Somerville, and Framingham. Each of those has its own finance office and budget calendar.

Addresses and phone numbers come from our database. Call first to confirm hours and whether the office handles walk-in questions.

Metro Boston, Western Hills, and the Cape: How Budget Work Differs by Region

Large cities in Greater Boston usually have a dedicated budget director, analysts, and online budget books. Boston and Cambridge both fit that pattern, which is why they appear in our database as separate budget offices.

Smaller communities work differently. In many central and western Massachusetts towns, including small hill towns in Franklin and Berkshire counties, there is no stand-alone budget department. The town administrator or select board prepares the budget with help from the town accountant, treasurer, and finance committee. You would ask the town administrator's office or the town clerk instead.

Regional school districts add another layer. A town that belongs to one pays an assessment to the district, and each member town's voters must appropriate that assessment. If school costs are driving your tax bill, you may need to follow both the town budget and the district budget.

Cape Cod and the islands add yet another pattern, with seasonal populations and many second homes. Property values there can be high, so the tax base, and the effect of Proposition 2½, looks very different than in a mill city such as Lowell.

Counties matter less for budgets than in most states. Massachusetts has abolished several county governments, including Middlesex and Suffolk. Sheriffs, registries of deeds, and district attorneys still exist, but a county budget office does not set your local tax rate.

Getting Budget Answers in Massachusetts: Practical Steps

A little preparation saves time at any Massachusetts finance office.

If the document is not online, you can file a written public records request. Massachusetts law requires a response within 10 business days. Meetings of councils, school committees, and finance committees fall under the Open Meeting Law, which requires posted notice at least 48 hours in advance, excluding weekends and holidays.

For state-level spending, the Office of the Comptroller operates the CTHRU transparency portal, which shows payments and budgets across state government.

The state budget department in Massachusetts is responsible for coordinating the governor's executive budget proposal, managing the state's fiscal year appropriations process, monitoring agency spending, and reporting on the state's financial condition to the legislature and the public.

Budget Departments locations are available in 2 cities across Massachusetts. They are spread across 2 counties.

Cities with the highest concentration include Cambridge, Boston, where larger municipal governments maintain dedicated budget offices to manage complex multi-department expenditure plans and capital improvement programs.

Residents of Massachusetts interested in participating in the budget process can attend public budget hearings, review draft budget documents posted online, and submit written comments to their local government budget office during the public comment period before budget adoption.

Boston Budget Department

View Details Call Now (617) 348-8430

Boston Budget Department

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Cambridge Budget Department

View Details Call Now (617) 349-4270

Cambridge Budget Department

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Hours

Nonprofit organizations, contractors, and grant recipients working with Massachusetts government programs should contact the relevant budget department for information about current fiscal year appropriations, spending freeze notifications, and any mid-year budget adjustments that may affect funding levels for ongoing programs or contracts.

Browse Budget Departments by county across Massachusetts to find the nearest location.

Boston and Cambridge: Using the Listed Offices in Massachusetts

Two budget offices in our database give you concrete places to start. The Boston Budget Department, at 600 Washington Street, can be reached at 617-348-8430. The Cambridge Budget Department, at 795 Massachusetts Avenue, can be reached at 617-349-4270. Each serves its own city's finances, so a resident of Somerville or Chelsea should contact their own city hall rather than these offices.

Call before you visit. Ask whether staff answer public questions directly or point you to a website, and which documents are available online. Budget staff mostly prepare and monitor spending, so questions about a specific tax bill, abatement, or payment normally go to the assessor's or collector's office instead.

Prepare a short, specific question. Asking how much the city budgeted for snow removal this year compared with last year gets a faster answer than asking how money is spent. Bring the fiscal year, the department name, and any line item you saw in a published document. If your question is about a decision, find out which body made it: the city council, the school committee, or town meeting. Elected bodies cast the votes, and budget staff supply the numbers.

Plan around peak periods. Budget offices are busiest from roughly winter through early summer, when proposals are drafted and voted. Autumn is often quieter, which makes it a good time to ask for last year's year-end figures or to learn how the next cycle will work.

Residents of Suffolk County and Middlesex County can browse the county pages on this site for other listings as our database grows.

Massachusetts Budget Department Questions Answered

Massachusetts cities and towns run on a fiscal year from July 1 to June 30, so budgets are usually adopted in the spring or early summer. Mayors, city managers, and town administrators typically present proposals in the months before. Cities vote through the city council, and most towns vote at an annual town meeting, often held in spring. If a community has not adopted a budget by July 1, state law lets it spend each month at one-twelfth of the prior year's appropriation until a budget passes. Check your city or town website for the exact meeting date and the warrant, which lists every article voters will decide.

Proposition 2½ is a 1980 state law that caps local property taxes. A community's total levy cannot exceed 2.5 percent of the full and fair cash value of its taxable property, and the levy limit can rise only 2.5 percent a year, plus an allowance for new construction. Voters can approve an override to raise the limit permanently, or a debt exclusion to pay for a specific project temporarily. Those votes happen at the ballot. Because the cap applies to the total levy, your own bill can still rise or fall depending on how your property's value changes compared with others.

Not in the way many other states do. Massachusetts has abolished several county governments, including Middlesex and Suffolk, so no county board sets a property tax rate for you there. Sheriffs, registries of deeds, and district attorneys still exist, but they are not budget offices for your local services. Decisions about schools, public works, police, and fire are made by your city or town. That is why our listings, such as the Boston Budget Department in Suffolk County and the Cambridge Budget Department in Middlesex County, are municipal offices rather than county ones. If you are unsure which office covers your address, call your city or town clerk.

Start with your city or town website, where the finance, town administrator, or clerk page usually posts the proposed budget, the town meeting warrant, and the finance committee's report. For comparisons across communities, the Division of Local Services Municipal Databank, run by the Department of Revenue, publishes standardized data on revenues, spending, tax rates, and levy limits for all 351 cities and towns. Compare your town with similar-sized neighbors, not only with Boston. For state spending, the Office of the Comptroller's CTHRU portal shows payments and budget information. If a document is not posted, ask the clerk or finance office, or file a written public records request.

Usually, yes. Boston and Cambridge city councils hold public meetings and hearings, and the Open Meeting Law requires public bodies to post notice at least 48 hours ahead, not counting weekends and holidays. Public comment rules vary: some bodies set aside time for comment, while others take testimony only at designated hearings, so read the agenda. At town meeting, only registered voters of the town may vote, and non-voters usually need the meeting's permission to speak. If you cannot attend, you can email council members or the finance committee, and written comments may be added to the record.

Send a written request to the records access officer of the city or town; email usually works. Under the Massachusetts public records law, the office must respond within 10 business days, either providing the records or explaining the delay or any exemption it claims. Offices may charge reasonable fees for copies and staff time, and they should give you an estimate first. Budgets, appropriation orders, and approved spending reports are generally public. If a request is denied or ignored, you can appeal to the Supervisor of Records in the Secretary of the Commonwealth's office, which reviews these disputes.