Friday, December 7, 2001
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Friday, December 7, 2001 |
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County's budget could cause battle By JOHN
THOMPSON
The budget lines have been drawn, and now the battle begins. Coweta County Finance Director Rick Smoot unveiled the county's $31.2 million 2002 budget to the County Commission Tuesday and said it represents a 2.3 percent increase over this year's budget. While the budget is balanced, the commissioners started jousting over several items Smoot presented. Commissioner Vernon "Mutt" Hunter said he could not support the staff's recommendation of cutting funds to the Senoia and Grantville libraries to $5,000 each. He said before the budget was passed he would suggest the funding be restored to $10,000 for each of the libraries. The staff had recommended a cost of living raise of 2 percent for the county employees, but Hunter said he would support nothing less than a 2.5 percent pay hike. "That's what the people are getting who are retired from the county. The working people should not get less," he said. The biggest battle of this budget season will probably be over Sheriff Mike Yeager's budget. Yeager's proposed budget is $8.6 million, which is 7 percent higher than last year's. But in his budget requests, Yeager asked for 21 new positions, while the staff only supported six. The sheriff also asked for 22 vehicles, including 14 replacements. The staff supported 12. Commissioner Jim McGuffey asked if the department heads had seen the budget before it was presented to the commission. When Smoot said it was traditional to present it to the commissioners first, McGuffey suggested the department heads should have a first look at it. But Hunter, who served as Coweta's county administrator for years, said Smoot was doing the proper thing. "He (Smoot) is not the person go back and forth and do compromises. It's not supposed to come here as a compromise," Hunter said. County Administrator Theron Gay said the county would hold a public hearing Dec. 18 at 5 p.m. for department heads to state their case before the county. If another public hearing is necessary, it would be scheduled before the end of the year since the county will vote on the budget at its first meeting in 2002.
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