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Mansfield prepares 2011 budget
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The Mansfield City Council is expected to pass its $1.22 million 2011 budget at its Jan. 3 meeting.

Mansfield is on a calendar year budget cycle, and City Clerk Pat Mullins said the city was behind by a month. The council received the proposed budget at its December meeting and will present any changes in January.

The overall budget is slightly more than last year’s $1.08 million budget; however, much of the increase is due to the increased cost of electricity. Mansfield is a member of the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and will pay an additional $37,000 to the authority in 2011 to purchase electricity. Mullins said the city will pass on the cost to its residents through the power cost adjustment.

The general fund will decrease by $10,930 to $191,530. The city is expecting to collect $1,000 less in property taxes and $5,000 less in local sales taxes.

 

Newborn

The Newborn Town Council approved its 2011 calendar year budget at its Dec. 6 meeting, Town Clerk Lisa Rowe said.

The $306,026 budget is $33,874 lower than last year, mainly because the town received a $27,580 one-time donation last year. The city also received several other donations to repair the old schoolhouse, which had its grand opening Oct. 2.

The city’s main revenue sources are its water charges, $100,000 per year; local sales tax, $76,000; beer and wine taxes, $24,000; and property taxes, $20,000. The city is expecting to collect $1,000 from package sales licenses, a fee it did not collect last year, according to budget documents.

The major expenses are salary and benefits for its three full-time employees, $103,698, bond payments, $45,963, water supplies, $36,000, fire service, $29,000, and street lights, $12,150. Payroll expenses increased $4,080 because of projected yearly pay increases.