2020 county budget adopted, 2019 budget amended

HIAWASSEE, Ga. – Towns County Sole Commissioner Cliff Bradshaw held a called meeting in his courthouse office Dec. 31 to finalize the adoption of the 2020 county budget and amend the budget from the previous year. “Every year, at the end of the year, we go over the previous year budget, and then we make any amendments that we need to amend. We might have an overage of one department, and under in another department, so we just move the money around so that we stay in budget,” Bradshaw began.

View Towns County’s 2020 budget

The commissioner’s office is in the process of calculating the exact amount that the county came in under budget in 2019, with an estimate expected between $80-100K. “The reason that we can’t tell you a definite number is because all of the departments haven’t turned in all their bills, and we’ve been screaming for that for the last two weeks, and I won’t name the departments, but there are departments that are slack sometimes on getting their bills in so it’s hard for us to get a definite answer on how much we came in under budget from 2019,” Bradshaw explained.

The budget for Towns County Sheriff’s Office was amended for $56,000 due to the purchase of two patrol vehicles. “They didn’t go over budget $56,000, they just got two cars that wasn’t in the budget, so we had to add that to keep the budget balanced,” Towns County Financial Director Andrea Anderson said. The sheriff’s office had purchased one vehicle from its allotted budget, Bradshaw added, before learning that the county could afford to purchase two additional patrol vehicles.

Furthermore, Towns County Detention Center exceeded 2019’s budget by $15K due to heightened food costs, the result of an increase in the inmate population. The new fire station in Young Harris was equally discussed. “We had budgeted $70,000 to go toward the fire station but ended up spending $95,000,” Anderson stated. “Chief Copeland is always good at conserving his money, so we were able to take it out of his operating money.” According to Anderson, the Towns County Fire and Rescue financial reserve is “still intact” and “the balance remains” for the upcoming year. Completion of the Young Harris fire station, located on State Route 66, is expected this spring.

Towns County EMS exceeded its budget by $35K due to unforeseen staff shortages, which created overtime pay for existing crew members. The issue is thought to be rectified, however, Anderson said. Towns County E-911 budget was amended for an additional $95,800, the result of increased dispatcher pay and necessary renovations to make way for updated equipment at the emergency command center. Bradshaw included that inmate labor and county employees are active in the construction.

Renovations to the former recreation center, which amounted to roughly $65K, exceeded the budget by $30K, and Towns County Transfer Station costs increased by $75K due to greater activity. “At least $50,000 of that, if not more, is from the haul bill,” Anderson said. “If you look at the revenues from ’19 to ’20, they also went up so that means we were busier at the transfer station and got more business, so that’s why that increased so much.”

Commissioner Bradshaw said that he is thankful for the good economy, reminding that it costs more for the county to operate due to the population influx. “Your public service, your EMTs, the firefighters, the road crews, everybody’s that much more busier,” the commissioner said. Bradshaw concluded the meeting by wishing Towns County citizens a “very happy new year” and reiterated that his door is always open to the public.

Featured Image: Towns County Commissioner Cliff Bradshaw explaining the 2019 budget amendments.