Statesboro faces roughly $4 million budget gap after county ends fire‑district arrangement

City officials told the Statesboro Mayor and Council on May 19 that dissolution of the county fire‑district arrangement has produced a multi‑million‑dollar shortfall that must be addressed in the FY2027 budget.

City Manager Mr. Penny said the county's decision to end a prior intergovernmental fire‑service agreement created approximately a $4 million gap for the city. He presented three high‑level options to balance the budget for the coming year: (1) a temporary millage increase, (2) cutting roughly 60 general‑fund positions (an estimate he said would be required to meet the shortfall), or (3) drawing down general‑fund reserves by several million dollars. He said the city currently holds about $6.7 million in general‑fund reserves and that anticipated 'floss' fund receipts arriving sooner than expected could reduce but not necessarily eliminate the shortfall.

Council members voiced strong resistance to large layoffs. "I am not in agreement with cutting 60 staff members," one council member said. Several council members criticized the county decision that led to the funding gap, calling it a ‘‘man‑made’’ problem and urging alternatives.

Mr. Penny said staff can prepare revised budget options for the June 2 public hearing but sought council direction on whether to pursue a temporary millage increase or pursue deeper spending cuts. He emphasized that a final millage rate is not set until the late summer or September but that procedural steps and public notice require the council to flag a preferred approach sooner for planning purposes.

What happens next: The council scheduled a public hearing on the FY2027 budget for the June 2 meeting and asked staff to prepare options reflecting varying levels of reserve use, service reductions, and tax‑rate changes. Council members said they expect to continue deliberations and invited public input during the scheduled hearings.

Quotes (attribution per transcript):
"If the council is not interested in increasing the millage rate, it would require serious cutting of our city budget," Mr. Penny said, adding that cuts on that scale would largely affect personnel and would require on the order of 60 positions.

Mayor and several council members said layoffs at that scale would not be acceptable and blamed the county decision to terminate the previous long‑term fire agreement for the fiscal pressure.

Financial details summarized from the meeting: Mr. Penny cited an approximate $4 million shortfall tied to the county's change in fire‑service arrangements; the city currently has roughly $6.7 million in reserves and anticipates receiving partial 'floss' funds this fiscal year that could partially offset the gap.