1 - Ivan Allen, Jr. Digital Collection - Georgia Institute of Technology

Lo\~\1LfI No Deficit in 1975,Jackson PromisesBy IIANK EZELL'lbere won't be a deficit inAtlanta's 1975 general fund,May 0 r Ma}1l8rd Jacksonpledged 11wrsday.Cit y Finance DirectorCharles Davis said in a separateinterview that he doesn'texpect a deficit and Council·man Richard Guthman said ina press leIter to the mayorthat immediate belt-tighteningmeasures are needed. All thedeve10pments followed a reportthat the general fund Isfacing a deficit of rr millionor more in the 1975 calendaryear."We have not had a deficitIn the Atlanta city budgetsince 1937 and I guarantee youthat we're not going to startnow," Jadson said.U's too early to say how bigthe budget will be, Jacksonsaid, "but whatever it is it'sgoing to be balanced."Davis took a similar tack.HI anticipate the same actionas we've had in the past -that's where you have to pullin your belt to stay within abudget," Davis said.Guthman, U si n g figureswhich be caUed "preliminaryand higtliy subject to change,"recornmeOOed immediate actionto:-Stop hiring in new posi.tions for the rest of the year.- Make no further changesin pey scales which would r tloslut in salary illCJ"t3SeS.He also recoounended that.the city reduce its expectedrevenue next year by S percent or $4.2 million.Guthman listed thefollowingpossibilities for acc0mplishingthat:- Abolishing unfilled job •slots, except for sworn policemenand firemen.-Making a 11 departmentbeads review their spendingplans willi an eye toward,reduction..-If necessary, reducing thenumber of city employes in allareas except sworn police andfire personnel.The raw figures - requestsfrom varioos departments fortGmewhere betwel:n mil·"ion and $9S million (~'",,~"!-patedingi:o~n;~the;~;~:t';~_~"o~~~~I:several factors willthose two widely sepa·figures, according toa v I 5 and CouncilmanGregory Griggs, chairman ofthe City Council"s FinanceCommittee.The $Tl.3 million figuredoesn't include federal grantswhich are already in hand aMwill be spent next year, orgrants whim are expectednext year but not in city cof·fers yet, Davis said.Beyond that, the anticipationfigure is a statutorily c0nservativeone. The lawrequires that the city make itaguesses on future incOme onthe conservative side.Davis estimated the in·crease, not counting grantfunds, would ron somewherebetween $2 million and $4 million.The figures for grant fundsnot included in the $77.3 mil·lion anticipation figure werenot immediately available.Griggs attacked from theother eOO, saying that electedofficials have not yet gotten alook: at the requests from. thecity's department heads."We might pare it clown to