The Catoosa County Board of Commissioners received the proposed Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 budget for review that assumes a rollback of the county’s general government millage rate to 4.789 from the FY 2025 millage rate of 4.947 mills.
The proposed FY 2026 budget is $46,860,459 and reflects a $3.6 million increase over the FY 2025 budget that officials said is needed to maintain public safety, infrastructure, judicial, and general government services.
The proposed budget includes a three percent cost of living adjustment for full-time employees. The state of Georgia did not provide a cost-of-living adjustment for elected officials. Additionally, the budget includes a $1.5 million transfer to the Capital Projects Fund for paving and stormwater projects.
Officials said the county’s Finance Department reviewed budget requests and held meetings with department heads in June to discuss their budget needs. The Board of Commissioners held work sessions on June 17, July 1 and July 15.
The largest revenue sources for the county - property and sales taxes - are flat compared to the previous year, but are mostly supplemented with investment income, it was stated.
The average increases in departments’ costs are about three percent with the driving force being higher personnel costs since Catoosa County Government is a service organization. Some departments with larger increases requested additional staffing in the upcoming fiscal year to fulfill the increasing need for services due to growth in the County. Across the board, increases in property and liability insurance are also a factor.
The proposed FY 2026 budget is available for public review at the Administrative Offices Building, 800 Lafayette Street, Ringgold, and online at www.catoosa.com/home/showpublisheddocument/3754.
The Board of Commissioners will hold a public hearing on the proposed FY 2026 budget next Tuesday at 6 p.m. at the Administrative Offices Building, 800 Lafayette Street, Ringgold.
The Board is scheduled to adopt the FY 2026 budget on Tuesday, Aug. 19 at 6 p.m. The FY 2026 budget takes effect Oct. 1, 2025.