A public hearing to allow residents to express concerns they may have over the proposed Statesboro budget is set for 5 p.m. today in the council chambers of City Hall.
    Property taxes will not be increased in the proposed budget, but there are increases in both the commercial and residential sanitation fees and water and sewer rates.
    Both of those areas have a proposed two-percent increase to help offset the impact of inflation. Neither have been adjusted in seven years.
    For residential sanitation customers, the increase would represent about a 25 cents increase to $13 a month.
    Statesboro City Manager George Wood said one of the reasons the city has been able to go so long without an increase was due to the growth in the system to absorb the additional costs.
    Also, the city is proposing an eight percent increase in tippage fees paid at the Statesboro-Bulloch County landfill to help offset the increased cost of transporting the waste to Wayne County. Wood said previously the increase won't "totally stem" the problem, caused in part by the increase in fuel costs.
    The increase will only affect private disposal companies.
    It's expected the city council will adopt the budget at their meeting next week.