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Parents will have chance to chime in on $1.6B budget at CMS public hearing

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Parents plan to tell the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School Board what they think about next year's budget Tuesday evening at a public hearing.

[RELATED: CMS seeking $70 million more from taxpayers than last year]

A portion of the budget will pay for teacher raises and more resource officers, but the big question is if it will mean a tax increase.

Overall, CMS is trying to get a $1.6 billion budget approved. The district is asking for $70 million more than taxpayers paid last year.

Click here for a link to the proposed budget.

Much of the extra money would go to school safety, including 27 new social workers, 10 counselors, 10 psychologists and 25 resource officers in elementary schools.

$32 million of the budget would go toward staff investments like teacher pay raises -- making CMS teachers the highest paid in the state.

['It's a huge challenge': CMS announces new safety and security measures]

It is still too early to know if a tax increase will be needed to pay for the changes.

After the public hearing, the budget request will move to county commissioners, who will make the final decision in June.