DALTON, Ga. — After making cuts to the property tax rate since 2008, the Dalton City Council is considering a tax hike and charging for children to play for recreation teams or making deep cuts to city services.

As expenditures continue to outpace revenue, the city has continued to dip into its reserve fund, and the plan discussed during Thursday’s meeting of the city’s Finance Committee for 2017 would be to have a $3.6 million cushion taken from the reserve and an increase in the millage rate by .287 mills.

The city would have $16.4 million remaining in its reserve fund. The millage rate is currently 2.506 mills. The increase would be $25.83 on a $100,000 home.

“That takes us back to a 2010 or 2011 rate and doesn’t make us cut services,” Councilman Tate O’Gwin said. “Once you cut services, property values will fall and our tax digest will fall, and then you have to raise taxes even more. It is just a spiral. We will have a higher level of taxation, but we will also have a higher level of services.”

Chief Financial Officer Cindy Jackson went over a proposed draft for the 2017 budget with a variety of scenarios for Mayor Dennis Mock and City Council members to consider. Councilmen Gary Crews, Tyree Goodlett and O’Gwin attended the meeting. 

O’Gwin said the city has cut 4.9 mills off the millage rate since 2008 and the percentage-point increase on property owners is a necessary burden. While Mock and O’Gwin support the tax increase, Crews wanted Jackson to explore cuts within departments to offset the need for the tax increase while eliminating cost of living adjustments for city employees. While Crews said he didn’t want to cut services, if budget reductions could be found before the millage rate must be set, he would hope to avoid a tax increase. 

City projections for the 2017 budget show revenues of roughly $30.7 million, $10.2 million of which will come from Dalton Utilities. Projected spending would force the city to use at least $1 million from the fund balance. 

Mock said while there might be room for some budget tightening by department, he doesn’t expect to see layoffs. 

“I lean more toward we have to do what we have to do to pay for what we got, and if that means a tax increase, that is what it needs to be,” Mock said. “We’ve got a fixed amount of money and this is what you get and make it work. I feel like we are running a fairly lean system right now. We have gone through the really big RIF (reduction in force) and we really haven’t added any people back.” 

In addition to the millage rate increase, the city would begin charging for recreation. The city has long had a free recreation department that is open to residents of the city and Whitfield County. Under the budget proposal, the Dalton Parks and Recreation Department would charge a $20 fee to city residents per sport and $30 to county residents. 

The recreation department projected budget of $3.5 million is the fourth largest city department behind police, fire and public works.

The City Council holds public hearings on the budget on Dec. 20 and 28. City Council members are expected to vote on the budget on Dec. 28.