Clayton County officials say they have bucked the struggling economy and record foreclosure rate, and will maintain county services without a tax increase.

On Thursday night, the County Commission unveiled a $168.5 million budget for next year that includes neither layoffs nor cuts to county services.

"Our job was to balance the budget. We've done that," Commission Chairman Eldrin Bell said. "We were faced with many of the same challenges as our neighbors. They are laying people off in Henry County, East Point and Atlanta."

"[Clayton] employees may not be getting the pay raises they want, but they do have jobs," Bell said.

The county is recommending a 3.3-percent spending increase, about $5.4 million over the current budget. Increased revenues have allowed the county to balance its budget without a tax hike, Bell said.

The commission estimates the county property tax rate will remain 13.453 mills. That figure does not include the school and fire tax rates.

Commissioner Virginia Burton Gray said she didn't trust the revenue projections and needed more information before supporting the budget.

"My concern is your revenue projections, given the problem taxes and the increases in foreclosures. The builders and developers are folding every day," Gray said. "How can we come up with all these revenue projections in the critical market we're in now?"

Last month, Clayton had the highest delinquency rate for mortgages out of 11 counties in the metro Atlanta area, according to the Trans-Union credit bureau. Nearly 1 in 10 Clayton mortgages was at least 60 days past due.

Despite the record foreclosures and the threat of Clayton's public schools losing their accreditation, the county's tax digest is stable, Bell said.

About 15,000 properties, including residential and commercial, went up in value, according to Rodney McDaniel, the county's chief appraiser. About 27,000 properties lost value, and roughly 46,000 stayed the same, he said.

Property taxes make up about 42 percent of the county budget. The rest of the budget comes from the penny sales tax, grants and other aid.

Seven residents attended Thursday's budget hearing, but only one spoke.

Pat Pullar, of the county's elections board, asked the commission to add another employee to the elections office, at a cost of about $24,000, because of a growing number of voters.

Between November 2004 and June 1, about 8,000 additional Clayton residents registered to vote. Elections officials anticipate registering another 5,000 voters before November, Pullar said.

The commission is scheduled to vote on the budget Thursday. Separately, the school board will hold two public hearings on its $612 million budget on Monday.