Atlanta fee hikes criticized

Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin's 2009 budget plan is "weak" because it relies on a host of fee increases and charter amendments with questionable support, a member of the city council charged Monday.

The $583.9 million budget, which the mayor unveiled last week, calls for $54 million in spending cuts -- and a $40 million property tax increase -- to help offset a projected $140 million shortfall.

The rest of the savings would come from fee increases covering a range of services, from obtaining a parking space to applying for a building permit to renting city facilities for a group event, and from several proposed structural changes in city government, including consolidating the solicitor's office with the law department.

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But Councilwoman Felicia Moore said the odds that the council will go along with all of those fee hikes and charter amendments are remote.

"There's a plethora of things here that have to go in order," Moore said during a meeting of the council's Finance/Executive Committee. "If any of these fail, we'll have to be back at the drawing board ... to write our own budget."

During a news conference later Monday, Franklin said there's plenty of time for Moore and other council members to air their concerns about her budget and perhaps make changes.

The mayor noted that the council just received the budget last week and has weeks to review it.

"This is where these conversations start ... not the middle of the budget process," Franklin said. "I wish them well in finding something we all can agree on."

Moore emphasized her concerns during Monday's committee meeting by voting not to accept the mayor's recommendations, a procedural motion that formally begins the panel's annual budget review.