Atlanta Budget Hearings Ongoing

The budget proposal (for PDF, click here) includes no tax hikes or service cuts.

Reed calls it a “fiscally responsible” plan that continues his commitment to public safety, youth development, and customer service.

“I’m going to continue to balance our budgets, I’m going to continue to make sure that I don’t raise people’s property taxes through my first term, and I’m going to continue to build cash reserves and strengthen the city financially,” said Reed in an interview with WABE earlier this week.

The plan includes funds to maintain a police force of 2,000 – up 700 officers since Reed took office. It also allows for the launch of a new 311 information call center.

Over the next several weeks in a series of budget hearings, council members will review the mayor’s proposal with department heads and make revisions. 

Councilwoman Yolanda Adrean, who sits on the city’s finance committee, says revenues once again don’t allow for much wiggle room.

“The tax digest is still losing value and so we haven’t hit the bottom just yet and so the budget that we’re looking at has no changes in service levels, very little changes in head count and it is very, very tight,” said Adrean.

She says one budget item that could stall the process involves employee salaries. In 2011’s massive pension overhaul, most employees took a 5 percent pay cut.

“We saved the pension plan and saved their benefits, but it came at quite a price. They feel like they’ve lost economic ground so they would very much like to make up for that 5 percent in the form of raises,” said Adrean.

Those raises aren’t included in the mayor’s proposal, a point currently under negotiation between the city and its employee unions.

In any event, budget hearings will wrap up in early June. The mayor and city council must come to an agreement by July 1.