Dalton City council reviews $49.82 million proposed 2026 budget; adoption set for Nov. 17

Dalton City leaders on Nov. 10, 2025 reviewed the proposed 2026 budget, a spending plan staff said totals $49.82 million and represents about a 7.5% increase over the 2025 budget. City staff outlined major cost drivers, recommended personnel changes and said the city plans to use roughly $805,000 from fund balance to balance the budget.

City administrator Andrew, who opened the hearing, summarized the budget process and told the council the city’s departments began preparing requests in mid‑August. "Our 2026 proposed budget has total expenditures of 49,820,000," he said, and then identified health insurance, a compensation and classification study and a proposed step‑and‑grade system for the fire department as primary cost pressures. Andrew said health‑benefit costs landed at about a 35% increase overall compared with 2025.

Finance director Cindy Jackson walked the council through revenue and expenditure detail, saying revenues are projected to rise about 5.8% — roughly $2.7 million — while expenditures rise by about $3.5 million. "It's going to leave us with a $805,000 deficit that we will be pulling from our fund balance to balance the budget as required by state law," Jackson said. She attributed most of the expenditure growth to wage and benefit increases, including a roughly $2.1 million cost to implement the wage study and the fire department step‑and‑grade proposal and a $1.3 million increase for health care.

Jackson also reviewed departmental shares of the general fund, saying public safety comprises roughly $26.3 million, or about 53% of the proposed budget, public works about $9.4 million (19%), and parks and recreation about $5.5 million (11%). She said the budget includes six full‑time positions: one in administration, two in recreation and three in the police department, and that the city plans to add three school resource officers while fully funding the police department’s historically authorized 90 sworn officer positions.

On revenue sources, Jackson said the budget assumes a $2 million transfer in from the Dalton Whitfield Solid Waste Management Authority and that the hotel‑motel excise tax is budgeted at $2.1 million. She said interest income is expected to drop and that miscellaneous revenues and new fees for public events are projected to add about $95,000. Jackson estimated an expected 19% increase in commercial property and liability insurance in the renewal process, though she said final renewal numbers are pending.

Councilmember Steve asked how much had been drawn from reserves this year; Jackson said adjusted 2025 budgets show a $2.5 million deficit but that she expects the actual draw from fund balance to be under $1 million this year and about $800,000 next year, numbers she said will be refined at the finance committee. Steve expressed concern about recent layoffs and their implications for the coming year: "I hope I'm wrong, but all these layoffs that we've been seeing the last couple months... I think that's not gonna be the end of it," he said.

Mayor Pennington noted that Dalton’s tax base has a relatively large commercial and industrial component and suggested the city may be less affected by residential‑tax caps tied to House Bill 1 than neighboring jurisdictions, though staff said the full effect of state changes and assessor activity remains uncertain. The council also clarified that the special events and community engagement coordinator is a single position (a typo on the slide had implied two positions).

The council amended the agenda at the start of the meeting to take public comment after the presentation; no members of the public stepped forward when the period opened. Mayor Pennington announced the proposed 2026 budget adoption is scheduled for the mayor and council meeting on Monday, Nov. 17, 2025, at 6 p.m., and said the proposed budget is available for public inspection at the finance office during regular business hours.

No formal adoption vote was taken at the Nov. 10 hearing. The council adjourned after the presentation and announcements.