The Pendergrass City Council is scheduled to vote on the fiscal year 2026 budget during its Nov. 18 meeting. The proposed $3 million budget reflects an increase of nearly $400,000 from the FY25 budget.
Approximately $125,000 will be added for employee benefits and another $125,000 for purchased services.
Financial clerk Jennifer Leshok explained that the employee benefits figure accounts for payroll taxes, health insurance premiums, pension contributions and workers’ compensation insurance. These costs will be allocated across each city department.
Purchased services include payments to primary contract employees such as the city planner, inspector and attorney, as well as operating expenses like pest control and IT support.
City to Update Purchasing Policy
The council aims to adopt an updated purchasing policy by January, following discussions at recent work sessions.
Leshok said revisions have been made to the conflict of interest section in response to concerns raised in October by council member Gabriel Gomez regarding disclosure procedures. The revised policy requires both the city employee and the vendor to disclose any conflicts of interest at the time a formal quote is submitted. This disclosure must also be made available for public review.
The proposed policy also gives preference to local vendors:
- For purchases under $10,000, local bids within 10% of the lowest non-local bid will be favored.
- For purchases over $10,000, local bids within 5% of the lowest non-local bid will be considered.
Council member Laura Bigley voiced concerns about transparency for purchases between $10,000 and $25,000. She asked that the council be informed of any quotes within that range, even if formal approval isn’t required.
“I think anything that’s a big, big thing from $10,000 to $24,000, I think the city council should be informed,” Bigley said.
The council also agreed to limit vendors to no more than three change orders per project to help prevent unexpected cost increases.
Meeting Schedule Changes
The council will hold its next regular meeting on Nov. 18.
Due to the Christmas holiday, December meetings will shift to Dec. 9 for the work session and Dec. 30 for the council meeting.
Margaret Pope is a Fink Fellow in the Cox Institute’s Journalism Writing Lab at the University of Georgia. This story was originally published in The Jackson Herald.
Show Comments (0)