DALTON, Ga. – Dalton City Council members discussed a budget for 2011 Monday that would cut nearly $1.6 million in spending.
A few blocks away Whitfield County commissioners wrestled with budget cuts of their own.
City officials proposed a $25.7 million budget to council members for 2011, down from the current year’s $27.3 million.
Administrators forecast $16 million in revenues from taxes and fees, in addition to $9.9 million in utility income. The taxes are down about $2 million from 2010, but the utility money is up by more than $1 million.
City Administrator Tyson Ross said the sales tax revenues were “starting to tick back up a little bit,” but he and other officials were cautious about future projections.
“I think you hope for the best but expect the worst,” Ross said.
There will be a hearing on the Dalton budget at 10 a.m. Monday at City Hall.
Dalton Mayor David Pennington praised employees and department heads for working more efficiently and saving the city money without reducing services.
“This could not have been possible without them,” he said.
Despite the cuts, Pennington said the city has been able to reduce taxes for the fourth year in a row.
Most of the spending cuts come from having fewer building projects on the 2011 plan, according to Ross.
Pennington said strength in the carpet industry has kept the city going.
“They didn’t ask for a bailout and they’re still paying their bills, which helps us pay ours,” he said.
At the county meeting, commissioners neared the completion of their budget, which was drafted in August. Commissioners are looking at a $41 million budget that is $2.7 million less than in 2010 and $5 million less than initial requests for 2011.
In a work session before Monday’s commission meeting, the board discussed providing lump sums to departments and letting the department heads pick where to cut, rather than going through line by line themselves.
County Finance Director Ron Hale said the budget discussed Monday won’t change much before it is presented at a hearing on Dec. 20 and voted on Dec. 27.
“I think this is going to be more or less what goes out,” he said.