In October 2003, Mayor Shirley Franklin submitted her third balanced budget to the City Council for approval.  The $464 million General Fund tentative budget emphasized the 2004 priorities of enhancing public safety, creating economic development opportunities, and reforming government, including 100 additional police officers, 25 firefighters and a two percent Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for all City employees.

As part of her commitment to a more efficient and effectively managed government, the Mayor and City Council agreed in 2002 to an adjustment in the timing of budget submissions and adoption, enabling the City to have a tentative adopted budget in place by the beginning of the fiscal year.  As in last year, the 2004 budget process began early, enabling a more thorough development and review of budget issues.  

Mayor Franklin stated, “The tentative budget which was approved by the Council on November 17^th is on firm financial footing. Despite a continued weak economy, it is in much better shape than the prior two years.  It keeps reserves full, includes no budget-driven layoffs or furloughs, and moves forward on key initiatives that are critical to the safety and vitality of the City.  Obviously, this is good news.  We have made great strides but we still face many challenges and must remain highly disciplined in our budget management practices to carry this momentum forward.”

Highlights of the budget include:  

•     The funding of a reserve in the General Fund equal to five percent of the budget, as required by the charter amendment adopted during 2002.  The 2004 tentative budget includes a five percent restricted reserve of $23.4 million. 

•       Adoption of revenue anticipations in the General Fund at 96 percent of the prior year recurring receipts, a more fiscally conservative level than the 99 percent allowed under the City charter.  Combined with the five percent restricted reserve, this practice provides an additional cushion against unforeseen expenses or declines in revenue. 

•     The funding of initiatives and programs at full year cost.  Although some initiatives may only incur expenses for a partial year, the budget called for a more conservative policy of budgeting costs for the entire year.  This measure ensures that we will not create an additional expense in any subsequent budgets. 

•     The tentative budget includes a millage rate rollback, as amended by the City Council.

Revenue Enhancement Initiatives

To augment fund availability and to prepare for future growth needs, the 2004 tentative budget includes two revenue enhancement proposals, which will generate revenues with minimal impact to City of Atlanta taxpayers:

•      The City expects to install 2,265 new parking meters by the end of 2003, with anticipated revenue of nearly $1.9 million. 

•       The Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS) has requested to use bed space at the City’s Correctional facility to house Federal INS detainees with an anticipated revenue of $1.2 million to house an estimated 120 inmates.

Key Budget Initiatives and Enhancements

In addition to the new 100 police officers, 25 firefighters and the two percent COLA adjustment for all city employees, additional enhancements in the budget include:

•       In the area of Economic Development, $500,000 was allocated to position the Atlanta Development Authority as a key economic development arm of the city and another $100,000 was allocated to support the new Regional Arts Alliance, an important initiative and potential economic catalyst for the metro region.

•       Implementation of the first phase of the consolidation of the City of Atlanta Municipal Court and the Atlanta Traffic Court, right-sizing non-courtroom personnel, for a net reduction of over 100 positions. The first phase of the consolidation will save the City $1.5 million in Municipal Court and $3.3 million in Traffic Court, and savings as high as $10 million are anticipated by 2006. 

•       Service Delivery Improvements, which include outsourcing property and fiduciary management services in the Department of Corrections and outsourcing of security at Piedmont Park to the Piedmont Conservancy.  Savings from these initiatives will be utilized for new Corrections Officers positions and much needed equipment for City parks. 

Mayor Franklin expressed her gratitude to employees, residents and the entire Atlanta community for their support and patience as the administration continues to work to accomplish the major goal of restoring the financial stability of the City.

The tentative budget goes into operation on January 1, 2004. Following the year-end financial close-out, adjustments will be made to reflect actual 2003 revenue collections and the final budget will be adopted. 

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