The City of Jackson, Georgia — county seat of Butts County — its budget, its headlines, and its back-fence chatter, in one place.
This page is built around two things: the city's adopted FY2027 budget — $17,384,045 across all funds — and five years of audited results, FY2021 through FY2025, the most recent audit closing the books on December 31, 2025 with a total net position of $48,416,802. Jackson's fiscal year is the calendar year, ending December 31.
Built from the city's own records — audited financial statements and adopted budget ordinances supplied by the City Clerk under the Georgia Open Records Act, October 2026.
City of Jackson · Mayor–council government · Fiscal year January 1 – December 31
FY2027 adopted budget — all funds
$17,384,045
The sum of the six adopted fund budgets; the General Fund accounts for $6,313,640 of it. Ordinance No. 2026-007 (the ordinance document supplied by the city is dated December 15, 2026), covering January 1 – December 31, 2027.
General Fund — FY2027 adopted
$6,313,640
Up from the FY2026 adopted General Fund budget of $5,696,326 (Ordinance No. 2025-008).
Total net position — Dec 31, 2025
$48,416,802
Audited. Governmental activities $13,374,312 plus business-type activities $35,042,490, per the FY2025 Statement of Net Position.
Governmental fund balances — Dec 31, 2025
$8,658,228
Audited. The General Fund holds $5,466,772 of the total, of which $5,409,674 is unassigned.
FY2025 General Fund actuals vs final budget
+$496,090 revenue
Audited. Revenue came in at $4,008,899 against a final budget of $3,512,809; expenditures were $5,428,964 against a final budget of $5,512,809 — $83,845 under.
Debt — Dec 31, 2025
$768,873
Audited. Finance purchase obligations are the city's only interest-bearing debt; no bonded debt is reported in the audited statements. The net pension liability is shown separately in the debt section below — it is not counted in this figure.
Total net position of $48,416,802 at December 31, 2025 (audited).
Most of Jackson's net position sits in its utility systems — electric, water and sewer — rather than in general government. Governmental fund balances, the spendable side of the ledger, total $8,658,228, with the General Fund at $5,466,772 (unassigned $5,409,674).
What the council's September 1 vote actually did.
On September 1, 2026, the City Council unanimously approved Resolution 2026-007, rolling back the city millage rate for tax year 2026. Had the rate not been rolled back, it would have stood at 4.088 mills.
A rollback trims the rate so rising property values don't quietly become a tax increase. The motion was made by Councilwoman Jeanette Riley and seconded by Councilman Don Cook. The final rolled-back rate was not stated in the meeting coverage checked.
The Downtown Development Authority reported on August 19, 2026 that vendor fees for its Christmas Market on the courthouse square had already covered the cost of the venue. A "festival of trees" is planned alongside it, and the DDA — chaired by Laura Carter — was seeking a liability insurance quote for the event.
Verified city actions from the council record.
The frame for the year ahead — January 1 to December 31, 2027
| Fund | FY2027 adopted | FY2026 adopted |
|---|---|---|
| General Fund | $6,313,640 | $5,696,326 |
| Electric/Sanitation Fund | $8,166,900 | $7,231,491 |
| Water/Sewer Fund | $2,623,400 | $2,511,676 |
| Municipal Court Fund | $225,100 | $190,000 |
| Hotel-Motel Tax Fund | $55,000 | $55,000 |
| Confiscated Assets Fund | $5 | $5 |
| All funds (computed from the adopted fund budgets) | $17,384,045 | $15,684,498 |
Municipal Court Fund: Section II of Ordinance 2026-007 prints the fund total as $225,100, while its own detail — budgeted fines & forfeitures revenue of $225,000 and expenditures of $225,000 — totals $225,000. The by-fund table shows $225,100, as printed.
Adopted expenditure budget, by department. Police alone is more than a third of the General Fund.
Public safety — police and fire together — takes $3,494,339 of the $6,313,640 General Fund budget. The department detail in the table below sums exactly to the adopted total.
Where the adopted budget expects the money to come from.
| General Fund department | FY2027 adopted | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Police | $2,257,278 | 35.8% |
| Fire | $1,237,061 | 19.6% |
| Street | $1,181,880 | 18.7% |
| Administrative | $762,166 | 12.1% |
| Executive | $540,375 | 8.6% |
| Municipal Court | $149,310 | 2.4% |
| Building Inspections | $120,000 | 1.9% |
| Cemetery | $53,570 | 0.8% |
| Culture & Recreation | $10,600 | 0.2% |
| Zoning Board | $1,400 | 0.0% |
| Total | $6,313,640 | 100% |
The revenue detail in Ordinance 2026-007 sums to $6,293,640 — $20,000 less than the ordinance's printed General Fund total of $6,313,640. The expenditure detail sums exactly to $6,313,640. The adopted total is shown as printed in the ordinance; the difference is in the city's document, not in the transcription.
Adopted budget: $8,166,900 — the city's largest fund.
Revenue: Charges for Services $7,812,100 · Interest Income $200,000 · Taxes $102,000 · Miscellaneous $52,800 — total $8,166,900.
Expenditures: Electric $7,776,900 · Sanitary $390,000.
Adopted budget: $55,000.
Revenue: taxes of $55,000. Expenditures: DMO-Chamber $30,000 · City Website $20,000 · Transfer to General Fund $5,000.
Adopted budget: $2,623,400.
Revenue: Charges for Services $2,376,000 · Investment Income $127,000 · Other Financing Sources $120,400 — total $2,623,400.
Expenditures: Water Maintenance $866,395 · Sewer Plant $801,265 · Water Plant $531,430 · Sewer Maintenance $424,310.
The Municipal Court Fund budgets fines & forfeitures revenue of $225,000 and expenditures of $225,000 (the ordinance prints the fund total as $225,100 — see the note under the by-fund table). The Confiscated Assets Fund carries an adopted budget of $5.
Source: City of Jackson FY2027 Budget Ordinance (Ordinance No. 2026-007; document dated December 15, 2026). FY2026 comparison column: Ordinance No. 2025-008.
FY2021–FY2025 · Audited financial statements · Fiscal years end December 31
Audited actuals, FY2021–FY2025 — with the FY2026 and FY2027 adopted budgets shown separately, on an expenditure basis.
In every audited year, the General Fund spent more than it took in on its own revenues — a planned deficit, covered by transfers in, chiefly a $1.5M–$2.0M annual transfer from the Electric Fund. In FY2025, actual transfers in were $1,502,823. The hatched FY2026 and FY2027 bars are adopted budgets, not results.
| Fiscal year | Total revenue — governmental funds | Total expenditures — governmental funds | General Fund revenue | General Fund expenditures | General Fund balance (year-end) | All governmental fund balances (year-end) | Total net position (year-end) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2021 | $5,186,437 | $5,075,260 | $3,234,691 | $4,000,209 | $2,837,613 | $6,441,196 | $36,250,558 |
| FY2022 | $5,817,629 | $5,878,500 | $3,727,047 | $4,724,096 | $3,554,493 | $7,467,380 | $39,172,424 |
| FY2023 | $6,832,159 | $7,584,031 | $3,757,442 | $5,180,472 | $4,156,463 | $8,740,508 | $42,931,434 |
| FY2024 | $6,026,583 | $7,748,140 | $3,716,311 | $5,354,268 | $5,118,233 | $9,618,678 | $45,417,194 |
| FY2025 | $6,870,519 | $9,596,750 | $4,008,899 | $5,428,964 | $5,466,772 | $8,658,228 | $48,416,802 |
Total expenditures include SPLOST-funded capital outlay — FY2025 capital outlay was $4,148,996 across governmental funds — which is why the totals exceed General Fund operating spending. Governmental fund balances dipped in FY2025 as accumulated SPLOST balances were spent down on capital projects.
Source: City of Jackson audited financial statements, FY2021–FY2025 (McNair, McLemore, Middlebrooks & Co.).
Audited budgetary comparison schedules · Final amended budgets
The pattern is five for five: in all five audited years, General Fund revenue came in above the final budget and expenditures came in below it.
| Fiscal year | Revenue — final budget | Revenue — actual | Variance | Expenditures — final budget | Expenditures — actual | Variance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2021 | $2,871,779 | $3,234,691 | +$362,912 | $4,416,594 | $4,000,209 | −$416,385 |
| FY2022 | $3,212,098 | $3,727,047 | +$514,949 | $5,245,298 | $4,724,096 | −$521,202 |
| FY2023 | $3,049,800 | $3,757,442 | +$707,642 | $5,439,800 | $5,180,472 | −$259,328 |
| FY2024 | $3,622,425 | $3,716,311 | +$93,886 | $6,138,322 | $5,354,268 | −$784,054 |
| FY2025 | $3,512,809 | $4,008,899 | +$496,090 | $5,512,809 | $5,428,964 | −$83,845 |
| Line | Final budget | Actual | Variance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | |||
| Property tax | $170,000 | $189,166 | +$19,166 |
| Local option sales tax | $1,850,000 | $2,037,138 | +$187,138 |
| Business taxes | $575,000 | $690,814 | +$115,814 |
| Beer, wine & spirits | $191,450 | $185,712 | −$5,738 |
| Franchise | $80,000 | $78,545 | −$1,455 |
| Real estate transfer | $18,000 | $32,561 | +$14,561 |
| Municipal licenses | $5,300 | $3,834 | −$1,466 |
| Fines & forfeitures | $192,000 | $181,522 | −$10,478 |
| Licenses & permits | $71,500 | $84,400 | +$12,900 |
| Regulatory fees | $52,000 | $184,299 | +$132,299 |
| Intergovernmental | $247,500 | $247,500 | $0 |
| Investment earnings | $1,400 | $2,537 | +$1,137 |
| Miscellaneous | $58,659 | $90,721 | +$32,062 |
| Contributions | $0 | $150 | +$150 |
| Total revenue | $3,512,809 | $4,008,899 | +$496,090 |
| Expenditures | |||
| General government | $681,564 | $681,564 | $0 |
| Executive | $511,585 | $510,983 | −$602 |
| Municipal court | $177,209 | $165,537 | −$11,672 |
| Law enforcement | $1,692,372 | $1,678,324 | −$14,048 |
| Fire | $979,064 | $979,033 | −$31 |
| Street | $1,091,099 | $1,091,099 | $0 |
| Cemetery | $53,660 | $44,773 | −$8,887 |
| Recreation | $22,600 | $13,870 | −$8,730 |
| Building inspection | $152,000 | $143,745 | −$8,255 |
| Debt service — principal | $120,429 | $90,159 | −$30,270 |
| Debt service — interest | $31,227 | $29,877 | −$1,350 |
| Total expenditures | $5,512,809 | $5,428,964 | −$83,845 |
FY2026 budget-vs-actual is not shown because it does not yet exist in the public record: the city's fiscal 2026 ends December 31, 2026, and no FY2026 audit or year-end budget-to-actual report was among the records the city supplied in October 2026. The latest audited comparison is FY2025. FY2026 figures on this page are the adopted budget only (Ordinance No. 2025-008).
Source: General Fund budget-and-actual schedules in the city's audited financial statements, FY2021–FY2025 (final amended budgets).
FY2025 audited actuals · General Fund and governmental funds
The local option sales tax alone is just over half of General Fund revenue.
Shown separately from revenue: transfers in from the Electric Fund of $1,502,823, and other financing sources of $265,781 — a finance purchase inception of $225,888 plus $39,893 from the sale of capital assets.
Public safety is just under half of General Fund spending.
Governmental funds, audited.
Source: FY2025 audited financial statements, governmental funds statements.
The city's utilities — FY2025 audited
| System | Operating revenue — FY2025 | Net position — Dec 31, 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Electric System | $6,634,016 | $12,185,997 |
| Water & Sewerage System | $2,782,436 | $22,821,156 |
| Sanitation System | $399,920 | $35,337 |
| Total business-type activities | $9,816,372 | $35,042,490 |
The Electric Fund transferred $1,500,000 to governmental activities in FY2025, per the audited Statement of Activities — that transfer is what covers the General Fund's planned operating gap.
Source: FY2025 audited financial statements, proprietary fund statements.
As of December 31, 2025 · Audited
The city's only interest-bearing debt.
No bonded or general-obligation debt appears in the audited statements.
Shown separately, and never added into the debt figure.
Government-wide, total liabilities of $3,297,952 stand against total assets of $50,934,446.
Source: FY2025 audited financial statements, long-term liability note and Statement of Net Position.
The documents behind every figure on this page — and what to know about them
Supplied by the City Clerk on October 23, 2026, in response to an Open Records request.
Discrepancies inside the city's own documents, disclosed rather than smoothed over.
Jackson city government, downtown, and community
Rumors, whispers & community chatter