Atlanta tax hike draws fire - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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Mayor Shirley Franklin’s $541 millio spending plan for the fiscapl year starting July 1 would end the employee furloughs imposerd across city governmentthis year, whichn substantially reduced police patrols and contributed to the closing of severak fire stations. But to do so, Franklimn is recommending a property tax hike of3 mills, an increas of about $240 a year on the averags home in the city.
In a presentationb at the start ofThursday night’s public hearing, Atlanta Chief Financial Officer Jim Glasss said public safety occupies such a huge portion of the city budger that any attempt to avoid or reducde the tax increase would cut into police and fire But taxpayers against the increase said the city couldc find other ways to generate the revenu needed to keep neighborhoods safe, including endingv Atlanta’s defined benefit pension plan for new pushing for more federal aid for water and sewer improvementes and being more aggressive in lookingt to privatize city services.
“It’s absurrd to ask taxpayers to choose between furloughzs and atax increase,” said Barbar a Payne, executive director of the Fulton County Taxpayerds Foundation. But new Atlanta homeowner Jeannine Brown, who moved to Georgia recentlufrom Maryland, offered qualifiex support for higher “I’m willing to do my share,” she said. “(But) I want servicesa when I call for Thursday night’s hearing, which drew about 75 was the last before council member meet on Monday to vote on the budget.