Chattanooga’s mayor is proposing a budget for next year that lays off seven Department of Technology Services staff members but grows the department by 32 new staffers.
The proposed layoffs follow revelations that Nationwide Recovery Services, a vendor that the city contracted with for debt collection, was hacked last year. The breach affected a number of organizations and nearby governments besides Chattanooga, and it exposed data including Social Security numbers and financial information.
The changes at the city — both the layoffs and the creation of the new positions — will be effective June 30, the last day of the fiscal year, if the City Council approves the mayor’s proposal.
There were no layoffs in the previous budget, but in 2023, Mayor Tim Kelly proposed a budget that included 14 layoffs.
Kelly’s proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year was published online in a 638-page document Tuesday, and city staff introduced the proposed budget in a presentation during a council meeting.