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Monday, May 5, 2008
Mayor Shirley Franklin makes her case to Atlanta Rotary
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Before she started her luncheon talk today, Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin received a standing ovation from most members of the Rotary Club of Atlanta.
But more importantly, the mayor also received a standing ovation at the end of her talk And several of the people who didn’t stand up the first time, rose to their feet.
Franklin went to great lengths explaining the city’s current budget crisis and her plans to have a balanced budget in 2009. The original estimate was that the city would have a $140 million deficit due to a host of factors including a change in the city’s accounting process, a change in its fiscal year, a decrease in building permits, rising health costs, flat sales taxes and increased operating expenses.
When looking to a possible budget cuts or the raising of taxes or fees, Franklin said she took public safety off the table. Public safety accounts for 55 percent of the city’s general fund budget.
Currently the city has 1,800 police officers with 45 vacancies. When she came into office in 2002, there were 1,442 officers. Still, she acknowledged the city is short of the 2,000 officers that she would like the city to have.
After other budget cuts and increased fees, Franklin said there still was a $40 million shortfall. She is proposing to cover that shortfall with increased property taxes.
Many of the Rotarians live in Buckhead, one of the wealthiest areas of the city that would have to shoulder much of that property tax increase.
When the mayor was pointedly asked about property taxes in Buckhead, she reminded Rotarians that the city’s share of their property tax bill is 23 cents. The balance goes to the Atlanta Public Schools and Fulton County. She also told them that when she came into office, the city’s share was 27 cents on the dollar.
Mayor Franklin then took a strong stand on how the state should share its revenues with cities and towns across Georgia, a common practice in most other states.
In fact, with the exception of West Virginia (which ranks 50th), Franklin said Georgia (49th) provides the least amount of revenue sharing with its cities than any other state. By comparison, about 25 percent of Boston’s budget comes from the state of Massachusetts.
“We don ‘t have that option,” she said, adding she hopes that will change. “This state in the next 10 years is going to have to look at revenue sharing. Sooner or later, we are going to have to look at the formula.”
Franklin also spoke of the investments her administration has made in the city, including water and sewer improvements as well as the development of the fifth runway.
“Atlanta can’t be great unless we invest,” she said. “We are determined to leave this city on firm financial footing. Otherwise the city will begin to unravel.”
As she was leaving Rotary, someone asked the mayor about her plans after her second term is up.
With a twinkle in her eye, she said she would like to run for Atlanta’s City Council, but not as president of the council. “If I run, I want a vote,” she said. “I’m just kidding.”
