Fulton County Commission Chairman

Karen Handel's first budget session as chairman came to a conclusion

Wednesday when the county passed its 2004 operating budget.

"The $712 million total

budget should include a small property tax relief for residents,"

said public information officer William Durant.

The General Fund budget is

$603 million this year, while the Special Services budget, which includes

many services for residents in the unincorporated county is $108 million.

Most details of the budget

were hammered out during an 8-hour work session January 14. During the

marathon negotiating sessions, the Fulton County Board of Commissioners

agreed to cut over $36 million from the tentative 2004 General Fund budget

and to reduce the General Fund millage rate by .3 mills.

Previously, on December 17,

the Board agreed to reduce the county's bond fund rate by .2 mills.

This tax and the general fund tax are paid by property owners countywide.

Consequently, with the reductions

in the Bond Fund and the General Fund, property owners will see a .5 millage

rate reduction in their property tax bills this summer, Fulton officials

said.

"Yesterday was a big win

for the taxpayers. The Board of Commissioners identified prudent cuts

and prioritized spending in order to ensure that services are delivered

without increasing the tax burden on our citizens," said Commission

Chairman Karen Handel. "The spirit of cooperation was clearly evident

during our day-long deliberation as we made the hard decision regarding

the 2004 budget."

Vice Chair Nancy A. Boxill

noted, "This has been a collaborative effort. All listened and all

participated in establishing Board policy and priorities going forward

in 2004."

"To the surprise of many,

what happened during the budget workshop resulted in a collaboration between

the members of the Board of Commissioners," said District 7 Commissioner

William "Bill" Edwards. "The efforts were jointly achieved

in an effort to minimize the burden and yet deliver the services to our

constituents."

In order to balance this year's

budget, the commission used money from reserves, dropping the general

reserve fund to $47.7 million, which is 7.9 percent of the general fund

budget.

"Years ago, the county

stipulated reserves should be 8.3 percent of the total budget. But the

commission believes the economy will cause the fund balance to rise,"

Durant said.

Last year, the reserve fund

dipped to 8,6 percent, but rebounded later in the year to 18.7 percent,

he added.