DALTON, Ga. - Whitfield County commissioners got an earful Monday on proposed budget cuts to several agencies that rely on county dollars to operate.
Officials from the Department of Family and Children Services, the Conasauga district attorney's office, the Whitfield County Board of Health and the Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center all wanted the commissioners to rethink deep cuts to those agencies' funding.
Commissioners are trying to cut about $1.7 million from the county's $43 million budget. Already, the county plans to draw $3.3 million from reserves to help offset expected red ink. Also, the county has ordered four mandatory unpaid furlough days for all employees.
Commissioners delivered deep cuts to agencies like the Department of Family and Children Services, but on Monday that agency's director said the cuts would eliminate funding for employees who help needy residents get Medicaid and food stamps and cut out money for clothes for children in foster care.
Already, the department is functioning without enough manpower, Director Lamar Long said.
"It's getting to be a beast now," Long said. "We don't have the workers to get the work done."
The county originally had eliminated the department from its budget after Lamar gave unclear numbers to the county that indicated he had a $95 million annual budget from the state. Long admitted those numbers were unclear, and pleaded with the county to reinstate at least $148,000 of his original $155,000 request.
County leaders will vote on the final budget Monday. Commissioners are in a corner with declining revenue from property and sales taxes and higher expenses. They voted earlier in the year to hold steady their 5.061 mills tax rate, which is the fourth lowest-taxing county in the state and 23rd
largest county government based on state rankings.
Commissioners also heard from Harold Pitts, director of the Whitfield Health Department. Commissioners have proposed a 76 percent cut to that agency's funding next year. Pitts said the health department would pull from a reserve fund to make it, but its board would like to see the original $1.2 million budget request funded next year.
Commissioners also had taken a tough stance with the Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center. That entity, which is run through a contract with Global Spectrum, asked for a $470,000 budget plus $33,500 for capital improvements. The center is funded jointly with Dalton.
The county came back with just $460,00 with no mention of the capital improvements. Shashank Gairola, the facility's general manager, asked the county to reconsider his request, citing the facility's estimated $6 million local economic impact and that certain capital improvements would help reduce manpower expenses.
Commissioners also heard from District Attorney Kermit McManus, who originally had asked for $1.2 million for the next fiscal year. Commissioners had cut that amount to $950,000 and on Monday he countered with $997,980, stating that he planned to trim two part-time staff members to absorb the cuts.
Commissioners made no decisions Monday, but Chairman Mike Babb said now the commissioners will communicate with budget director Ron Hale and determine what they can afford.
"We're already at negative, and we're going into our fund balance," Babb said. "It's just a matter of how much we're going to dip into that."
Contact staff writer Adam Crisp at acrisp@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6323.