Cusseta‑Chattahoochee leaders confront $740,000 budget shortfall, consider raising millage

Cusseta‑Chattahoochee County officials told residents at a series of April hearings that the county’s proposed fiscal 2025 budget starts with a roughly $740,000 shortfall and will require significant cuts or new revenue.

“We are starting at a $740,000.00 deficit and we need to get it down to be balanced,” County Manager Thomas Weaver said during the Apr. 1 public hearing. Weaver told the board ambulance receipts have brought in “over $130,000.00,” but that those receipts do not fully cover EMS operating costs.

Commissioners discussed options including trimming department requests, shifting capital items to SPLOST where eligible, and a potential increase in the millage rate to cover recurring costs. Commissioner Jason Frost urged the board to prepare the public for a possible tax increase, saying the county must “manage within our means.”

Chairman Charles Coffey told hearing attendees the board has limited choices if revenue is insufficient: “If the money isn't there the county cannot fund it.” Coffey said commissioners would circulate proposed cuts and alternatives at upcoming meetings and track whether state measures such as HB 581 advance — noting that any new sales tax revenue would not appear immediately.

The board planned further work‑session review and asked departments to identify line‑by‑line reductions; public hearings on the proposed budget continued through April. The county manager was directed to present a revised budget with explicit cut recommendations and the commissioner-appointed schedule for any proposed millage change.