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McDonough council approves FY2026 budget amendment, reallocates funds for police overtime and SPLOST projects
Summary
Council approved Budget Amendment No. 1 for FY2026, adding $82,000 to police overtime (to $164,000) funded by higher insurance-premium-tax receipts, recognizing SPLOST allocations for the Commerce Building, adding $45,000 for EV-charging in SPLOST 6, and transferring $418,000 from impact fees for Judy Drive acquisition.
The McDonough City Council approved Budget Amendment No. 1 for fiscal year 2026 at its Dec. 15 meeting, adjusting revenues and expenditures across multiple funds to reflect recent purchases and operational trends. The amendment passed on a recorded vote of 7 in favor.
Budget manager Dana Strickland and finance staff presented the amendment and explained the largest adjustments. "We are requesting an additional $82,000 [for police overtime], that would set the budget at $164,000," the presenter said, attributing the need to increased patrols for city activities and subdivisions and to higher overtime pay following recent salary increases. Finance staff said the increase would be funded primarily from stronger-than-expected insurance premium tax receipts. "We budgeted conservatively for the premium tax and actually received more; those funds are available," staff told council.
The amendment also retroactively recognized SPLOST 5 funds to account for the Commerce Building purchase (the future city hall), added $45,000 in SPLOST 6 for an EV-charging-station project and reallocated other SPLOST line items, and moved $418,000 from the impact-fee fund to cover the purchase of Judy Drive. Finance staff said these changes are adjustments to reflect recent transactions and available fund balances; the city’s combined fund balance was described during the meeting as approximately $65–68 million.
Council members asked for clearer labeling in the amendment to reflect overtime related to "additional patrols" versus city events and sought more granular forecasting for overtime when the FY2027 budget is developed. Councilwoman Thomas moved approval; the motion was seconded and carried 7–0. Staff committed to providing further detail about overtime projections and the drivers behind the $82,000 estimate.
The amendment will be incorporated into the official FY2026 budget documents and the city will monitor actual expenditures for the remainder of the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026.
