ALTO, Ga. — The Alto mayor and town council will meet Thursday, Dec. 18, with Georgia Municipal Association consultant Pete Pyrzenski to discuss planning and other town issues, including the still-unadopted 2026 budget that has been tabled multiple times over the past several months.
Budget process began in October
The meeting is scheduled for 1 p.m. and follows a prolonged budget process that began in October with public hearings on a proposed millage rate increase and has yet to result in a final spending plan for the coming year.
Council members voted in late October to raise the town’s millage rate to 6.2 mills to help address a projected deficit, restoring the rate to a level last seen in 2016. CFO Linda Turner said at the time the increase was necessary to stabilize revenues as Alto worked to finalize its 2026 budget.
Tabled budget
Despite that action, the council has twice delayed adoption of the budget. A draft budget totaling about $1.22 million was presented in November but did not fully close a projected deficit of roughly $79,000, prompting the council to table the vote for further review. The budget was tabled again at the council’s Dec. 9 meeting.
Budget uncertainty has coincided with broader operational concerns, including challenges within the town’s water department that were the focus of a specially called meeting on Friday.
Focused on planning
At last week’s meeting, council said the city is focused on long-term planning while pausing any immediate policy changes. Councilwoman PJ Huggins said no changes to water department policy will be made until the city meets with Pyrzenski on Thursday.
The upcoming meeting with Pyrzenski is expected to give the council an opportunity to review budget assumptions, long-term planning needs and other governance issues as Alto works toward adopting a final 2026 budget.
No formal vote is expected during Thursday’s session, but the discussion will help guide next steps in the budget process.
