Council approves $6.49 million transfer to water supply tunnel project after brief delay

The Atlanta City Council adopted a substitute ordinance authorizing a FY2025 budget amendment to move $6,493,699.41 from watershed reserves into the water and wastewater renewal and extension fund to add funding for the water supply tunnel project.

The item (substitute for 24‑0‑10‑78) was introduced by the City Utilities Committee. Councilmember Antonio Lewis said the substitute increased the funding amount; when Councilmember Howard Shook asked, “I'm curious as to why the amount changed from when we met last week to this week,” the finance representative replied, “I don't have any immediate information on the change to the the amount but I can get back to you before the end of the meeting.” The item was temporarily postponed for the meeting to obtain that clarification. Finance and legislative staff later confirmed the companion budget paperwork was in order and the body voted to adopt the substituted ordinance.

Vote and outcome: The council adopted the substitute ordinance in a recorded vote of 13 yeas, 0 nays (the meeting recorded some members present/absent across several items); the substitute passed and the transfer was authorized.

Why it matters: The transfer directs nearly $6.5 million into a specific water capital project (the water supply tunnel), increasing available funding for planning, construction or related work. Council discussion focused on ensuring transparent roll‑up of the companion paperwork and confirming the final amount before approval.

Next steps: The finance office and Watershed Management will implement the fiscal transfer; council members had asked for the finance staff to provide the rationale for the amount change and related paper trail.