March 21, 2023
By: Dwayne Page
The DeKalb County budget committee met for the first time this year on Monday night at the courthouse to begin making plans for the 2023-24 budget.
County Mayor Matt Adcock and the seven-member budget committee reviewed the early workings of a new spending plan comparing the county general fund document line item by line item with the current fiscal year budget. Adjustments are to be made in several categories due to inflation. In a few cases spending is to be trimmed or cut from little used miscellaneous line-item funds. The budget will also have to account for a state increase in salaries for county wide public officials along with pay hikes for county general employees who are due a raise and or step increase according to the county’s pay plan.
Steve Bates, the County’s Fiscal Agent and Financial Advisor and Kristie Nokes, an employee of the County Mayor’s Office also participated in the budget committee meeting.
Those presenting their proposed 2023-24 operating budgets Monday night were County Mayor Adcock, Sheriff Patrick Ray, and Fire Chief Donny Green. No drastic changes were proposed. Any Capital Project requests they may have will be presented at a later budget committee meeting.
This was the first of several budget committee meetings to be held over the next few months. Other county department heads and public officials will have an opportunity to present their proposed budgets soon.
Members of the new budget committee are Jeff Barnes (Committee Chairman), Sabrina Farler (Vice-Chairman), Susannah Cripps Daughtry, Larry Green, Greg Matthews, Beth Pafford, and Daniel Cripps.