Statesboro staff presents FY2027 budget with $111.3M total and recommends 2.129‑mill increase

City staff presented the proposed FY2027 budget to the Statesboro City Council during a public hearing on June 2, laying out a maintenance‑focused plan that the presenter said contains ‘‘no additional personnel’’ and emphasizes public safety and utility infrastructure.

Key figures presented by staff included a total budget of $111,316,250, a combined general fund and fire fund increase of about 5%, a proposed pay‑plan adjustment of 2% (staff said a consultant recommended 3.5%), and a recommended increase in employee health‑insurance premiums that would raise employee contributions. Staff said the recommended transfer from the general fund to the fire fund rose significantly following the county’s decision to dissolve the fire district; the presentation cited an increase in that transfer from roughly $3.2 million to about $7.4 million.

The presenter explained capital and operating fund breakdowns: the general fund was described in the slides as about $25,156,235 (presenter read a figure formatted as "25,000,000, $156,235"), a fire fund at roughly $8.6 million, a water/wastewater fund at about $11.5 million, and a capital fund of about $27 million. Staff described the overall operating funds total at roughly $62 million and a $100 million‑class future wastewater treatment plant as a long‑range need.

Staff also called out several cost drivers and priorities: a recommended 15% increase in employee‑related premiums (health insurance contributions), $170,000 in general‑fund support to continue a policing technology contract (described as “Flock”), an additional $100,000 for streetlight electricity, credit‑card fees and video‑forensics subscriptions, and continued investments in downtown and utility infrastructure. The presenter said the budget as presented is balanced but would require using $205,210 in general‑fund reserves to balance FY2027 under current assumptions.

Mayor and council members asked questions about water capacity, debt, and the fiscal effects of the county’s actions on fire funding. Staff said the city currently has roughly 4 million gallons per day of extra water capacity available to the city system but emphasized that any industrial discharges must meet pretreatment standards before being accepted by the wastewater plant.

The presenter concluded by recommending a millage rate increase of 2.129 mills to offset the loss of county fire‑district funding; staff and council said they expect to revisit numbers when county digest figures are finalized and scheduled a follow‑up public hearing on June 16 to continue public input before finalizing rates.

What’s next: staff will incorporate updated property digest numbers when available, present final recommended millage for council approval and hold the follow‑up public hearing on June 16. No final adoption occurred at this meeting; the presentation opened and closed the public hearing and moved the record forward.