The proposed Hamilton County budget for 2018 does not include a property tax increase.
This makes the tenth year in a row county taxpayers have not faced a tax hike.
"General government takes the biggest hit," Mayor Jim Coppinger said in a comprehensive budget workshop with county commissioners this morning.
In a mid-May budget workshop, Coppinger told county commissioners it would take a 60.9-cent tax increase to pay for all budget requests.
Coppinger cited public perception that government did not use money efficiently as one of the reasons the $691.5 million did not include a tax increase.
The 2018 budget is $12 million larger than the 2017 budget, which totaled $679.6 million.
Commissioner Warren Mackey questioned how progress can be made in building up school infrastructure without more money.
However, he said his concerns dos not necessarily mean he supported a tax increase.
Commissioner Joe Graham pointed out the county has been able to still bring in more revenues over the years because of growth.