DeKalb PWI committee reviews budget; sanitation vehicle program, pay study and facilities master plan highlighted

Commissioner Robert Patrick, chair of the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee, opened the Feb. 13 special meeting by asking staff to present the public-works budget and call out differences from last year.

Committee members were told the proposed budget is largely a “status quo” plan with a few notable changes. Matt Williams, a county staff member, told commissioners the largest immediate change was returning sanitation to the county's vehicle-replacement program; he estimated “order of magnitude, it's about $13,000,000 swing in their budget.” Williams also said the draft budget anticipates a 10% increase for water and sewer revenues and that the request aims to preserve baseline operations while funding several studies and one-time needs.

Why it matters: the budget frames how the county will pay for ongoing repairs and the capital improvement program (CIP) for water and sewer infrastructure tied to the county's consent-decree obligations and long-term capital planning. Commissioners pressed staff for clarifications on what is carried forward from prior years and what will change if the studies reveal gaps.

Key items discussed

- Vehicle replacement and sanitation: Williams said sanitation had been kept out of vehicle replacement for several years and was now being re-included, producing roughly a $13 million budget swing for that division.

- Anticipated water and sewer revenue increase: Williams said the draft budget reflects an anticipated 10% increase for water and sewer, consistent with the rate-discussion the committee planned to take up later in the meeting.

- Personnel and compensation studies: Commissioners were told the county will conduct a pay-and-class study that “may have some effect on many of our workers” across watershed management, sanitation and roads and drainage; the study could require midyear or future adjustments to pay ranges.

- Facilities master plan and operational assessment: the administration plans a facilities master plan to identify consolidation or space needs, and an organization-wide operational assessment to find process changes that could improve performance. Williams said those studies are intended to “address potential deficiencies and to move us forward.”

- Cost-allocation update: staff will update how internal-service costs are allocated to operating departments, which could change department-level budgets in future years.

Commissioners’ requests and clarifications

- Sidewalk repairs: Commissioner Patrick asked whether an allocation of roughly $500,000 for sidewalk repairs from last year remained in the capital improvement plan; Williams said part of it had been carried into a CIP account and he would verify the amount.

- Traffic/striping and equipment: Commissioners asked about traffic signal and pavement-marking plans. Staff noted the county purchased striping equipment and retention-pond equipment using ARP funds and that any outstanding replacement plans might be covered under operating budgets or SPLOST (special-purpose local-option sales tax) if eligible.

- Information cadence: Commissioners asked how often project and budget information would be updated. Staff said project sheets are updated quarterly and that a new Power BI dashboard is being piloted to give more frequent updates for rehabilitation work (in some cases three times per day).

Meeting context and next steps

Commissioners and staff agreed the draft budget is meant to be conservative and that staff and directors are available to meet one-on-one with commissioners before formal budget adoption. No committee vote on the overall County budget was taken at the meeting; the group moved on to the separately scheduled rate and CIP discussions.

Ending

The committee closed its budget discussion after commissioners and staff agreed to follow up on the outstanding verification items and to bring more detailed project- and personnel-related information to future meetings.