DeKalb FAB Committee recommends 2025 budget with targeted carryovers and program additions

The DeKalb County Finance, Audit and Budget Committee voted to forward a recommended 2025 budget package to the full Board of Commissioners that includes a mix of carryovers from 2024, targeted new funding for county priorities and a set of items deferred for further review.

Committee members described three main buckets of amendments: Schedule C carryovers (items approved in last year's process but not yet spent), constitutional‑officer requests (departmental or office priorities such as the district attorney and courts), and commissioner requests (district projects and community programs). Chair Ted Terry said the committee would include most carryovers and certain commissioner proposals while holding other items for up to 30 days for additional details.

Key allocations and actions included:

- Superior Court and courts: the committee advanced funding requests for judicial security, two court reporters, interpreters and other professional services; Judge Shondina Morris asked the committee to fund $1,141,167 in near‑term needs for court security, court reporters and accountability court programming. Committee members said they supported prioritizing items that reduce case delays and jail stays.

- Solicitor general: the committee approved funding to purchase a case management and digital evidence system (the solicitor’s request totaled $557,037) and to address an ADA access improvement at Camp Circle. The committee approved the software funding and agreed to refine facility and vehicle requests in 30 days.

- Public safety and sheriff requests: capital needs at the jail and other multi‑year projects were acknowledged; the committee asked administration to return in 30 days with a detailed CIP plan for those items.

- Animal services and public health: carryovers and transfers for a mobile spay/neuter vehicle, a wheelchair‑lift shuttle van and humane‑society training were included. The committee approved matching funds for a proposed training program funded in part by a private donation.

- Public art and community programs: the committee included funding requests for Porter Sanford Performing Arts programming, a public art plan and graffiti remediation, and directed staff to coordinate details with Recreation, Parks and Cultural Affairs and Discover DeKalb.

- Commissioner requests: the committee included district requests such as tree‑removal pilot funding, license‑plate reader trailers for portable deployment, crosswalk and trail improvements for the Stone Mountain Trail, and a proposal to acquire roughly 76.8 acres adjacent to Arabia Mountain; funding sources and implementation details will be clarified.

- Childcare pilot: the committee included a pilot childcare reimbursement program (estimated $150,000 initially) and asked the administration to report back on operational details and annualization.

Committee staff and administration identified a handful of items to be clarified before final adoption, including the status of unspent appropriations from 2024 and vehicle purchase timing; the chair asked commissioners to submit any items that had been approved at the end of 2024 but not spent so staff could re‑establish those appropriations where appropriate.

The committee approved the recommended package by voice vote and will present the recommendation to the full Board of Commissioners for final action. "This is a really remarkable budget," Chair Terry said, noting the package covers public safety, public health, parks, animal welfare and infrastructure investments.

What comes next

Staff will finalize line‑item numbers, confirm funding sources (including alternative sources such as SPLOST or hotel‑motel funds where applicable), and bring the recommended FY2025 budget to the full board. The committee requested that administration provide clear, dated guidance about end‑of‑year carryovers for future budgets.