Taxpayers across Fulton County can relax. A tax rate hike this year to fund the county government appears unlikely.
Since Commissioner Tom Lowe suggested a 5.8 percent rate increase last week to the current millage rate of 10.281, all six of his colleagues have gone on record in opposition. Unless the board reverses course later this year, residents won’t be paying a higher rate that would be an extra $42 on a $250,000 home with a homestead exemption.
Commissioner Robb Pitts said during a budget meeting this week that raising taxes isn't the answer. Others have either issued statements to that effect, or confirmed verbally to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that they won't vote for a tax increase.
"We have a spending problem not a revenue problem," Pitts said.
Fulton County Taxpayers Foundation Executive Director Barbara Payne said commissioners were probably barraged with e-mails, which she encouraged foundation members to send.
"It's obvious that the majority of the commission knows this is not the time to raise taxes," Payne said. "There's always a way to cut without raising taxes. They just need to be creative about it."
While they seem to be in agreement on that point, commissioners have been unable to agree what the cuts should be. At one point in the budget meeting, Lowe honed in on several children and youth programs within the Housing and Human Services budget that had earmarks of about $100,000 to $200,000, but appeared to service only a few dozen people a piece.
Commissioner Bill Edwards shot back that a program for teen fathers, for example, may serve 35 fathers at a price of $208,000, but that's also serving 35 children, 35 teen mothers and 35 families.
Commissioner Liz Hausmann said she can't support spending $3.9 million on one-time raises for employees in nonsupervisory positions earning $59,452 or less, as the current budget draft calls for. It would cause morale problems unless everyone gets more money, she said.
The $3.9 million figure came from Edwards and Vice Chair Emma Darnell, who initially wanted money withheld from Grady Memorial Hospital over contract noncompliance to go toward what are effectively $1,200 employee bonuses spread out over 12 months. The board voted to give the money to Grady anyway, then instructed Williams to still find that same amount for raises.
"I'll tell you again, $3.9 million walked out of here, for nothing," said Edwards, who opposed paying Grady. "And you're worried about what kind of impact we have on children?"
Lowe made his rate increase proposal last week after County Manager Zachary Williams told the panel that 2011 spending overshot revenues by $24.4 million. He pointed out that other counties, including Gwinnett, Cobb and DeKalb, have all raised taxes.
A working version of the 2012 budget, which will be approved later this month, projects $602.6 million in expenditures and $520.4 million in revenues, the difference being made up by dipping into reserves, leaving that fund at $50.3 million.
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