Marietta work sessions: tax collections short of budget; SRO MOU moved for more review; GIRMA insurance proposal advanced

The City of Marietta's committee and special called work sessions addressed fiscal-year revenue figures, school resource officer contract revisions, an insurance proposal from the Georgia Municipal Association (GMA), land-division approval and adjustments to commercial immobilization fees, and recommended a change to the municipal ethics code.

In a finance presentation, staff reported June hotel-motel receipts of $336,259 and total annual hotel-motel collections of $3,762,000. Staff said the city's budgeted general-fund share for the auto 3% rental tax was $1,282,000, with actuals of roughly $1,074,000, a shortfall of about $208,000. Staff said partial reserves will be set aside — $114,000 from auto-rental collections and $25,000 from hotel-motel receipts — and that preliminary year-end closing shows a roughly $2.8 million positive position to address final invoices or capital needs. Staff cautioned these numbers are preliminary while the year-end close proceeds.

Why it matters: the shortfalls affect near-term discretionary capital and reserve planning; staff said events and anticipated activity in the coming fiscal year could boost future receipts.

The School Resource Officer memorandum of understanding (SRO MOU) with Marietta City Schools drew detailed questions. Staff said the five-year agreement (to run through 2030) has redlined edits, clarifies officer assignment decision-making (calling out the Police Chief and the Superintendent), and reflects higher equipment and vehicle costs since the 2019 agreement. Council members and staff agreed the school board had outstanding questions; the council moved the item to the agenda work session so edits and…