NorcrossNot a ballot

How Norcross is run

Who runs Norcross, what it costs, and where your money goes

The city manager, council pay, the budget, your property tax bill and who provides each service, from Norcross's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 11, 2026.

Who runs Norcross

A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The council sets policy, adopts the budget and sets the tax rate.

City of Norcross

What they are paid

City manager Cheri Hobson-Matthews: base pay$225,0002026-09-11. Base salary in the employment agreement presented with her appointment on August 24, 2026. The term runs to August 30, 2029. After a yearly review she may receive up to a 5% raise. City of Norcross · Aug 24, 2026
In the contract
  • Six months' salary as severance if let go without cause
  • $500 a month car allowance
  • City pays 80% of her own health coverage
  • City match of up to 3% of base salary in a 457b/401a plan
  • Life insurance of at least two times her salary
  • Up to $10,000 in moving costs
A council memberNot confirmedFY2026-27. The FY2027 budget shows one combined Mayor and Council line of $79,200, not a per-member amount. City of Norcross
The mayorNot confirmedFY2026-27. The FY2027 budget shows one combined Mayor and Council line of $79,200, not a per-member amount. City of Norcross

Norcross city staff

148 full-time-equivalent positions, including Public safety (police, 911, code enforcement) 75, Norcross Power (electric utility) 10, Finance 10. FY2026-27. Authorized positions for FY2027: 145 full-time and 3 part-time. City of Norcross · Aug 10, 2026

Georgia has no statewide pay database. The city publishes authorized positions by department, not individual salaries. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.

Is Norcross in the red?

Cities must pass a balanced budget, so "profit" and "deficit" mean something different here. The useful questions: does the city's everyday money (the general fund) cover its everyday costs, how much does it keep in savings compared with its own target, and how big are its pension and debt bills.

General fund, FY2026-27$23.6MOut of $62.7M across all city funds, which includes utilities and other money that can only be spent on one thing. City of Norcross
Savings grew, FY2024-25 (audited)+$8MGeneral fund revenue $22.5M, spending $20.3M. Revenue exceeded spending by $2,195,409. A $5,870,000 transfer from the electric utility fund, part of $6,323,771 in transfers in, raised the general fund balance by $8,022,180. City of Norcross · Mar 9, 2026

The city's own outlook

We found no multi-year forecast. The FY2027 budget balances general fund revenues and spending at $23,568,560, up 4.7% from $22,513,555 in FY2026. City of Norcross

Savings against the city's own target

Unassigned general fund balance: $20.7M (2025-08-31). The city's own target: We found no minimum reserve target in the audit or budget. The council adopted a fund balance policy by resolution that lets the Administrative Services Director assign amounts for specific purposes. The audit says unassigned reserves equal about 100% of a year's general fund spending and transfers out. City of Norcross · Mar 9, 2026

Pension promises not yet funded$2.2MThe city's defined benefit plan, run through the Georgia Municipal Employee Benefit System (GMEBS), had a $2,229,409 net pension liability and was 89.30% funded, measured September 30, 2024, up from 78.08% a year earlier. (2024-09-30). City of Norcross · Mar 9, 2026
Debt owed$02025-08-31. City of Norcross · Mar 9, 2026

Why we skip the "budgeted deficit": many cities plan to dip into savings, then spend less than planned. The audited result tells you what really happened.

Where the money comes from and goes

The general fund only: the city's everyday money for FY2026-27.

Comes from

  • Property taxes$9.8M · 41%
  • Fines and forfeitures (municipal court)$3.1M · 13%
  • Transfers in (electric fund, hotel-motel)$1.9M · 8%
  • Insurance premium tax$1.9M · 8%
  • Franchise taxes$1.5M · 6%
  • Business and occupation license tax$1.1M · 5%
  • Motor vehicle tax$942,712 · 4%
  • Other (other taxes, permits, interest, grants, fees)$3.4M · 14%

City of Norcross

Goes to (FY2026-27)

  • Police$8.3M · 35%
  • Public works$2.5M · 11%
  • Information technology$2M · 9%
  • Non-departmental$1.8M · 8%
  • Parks$1.6M · 7%
  • E911$1.2M · 5%
  • Cultural arts$985,628 · 4%
  • Other (court, community development, finance, city manager, council, HR, clerk, economic development)$5.1M · 22%

City of Norcross

Who provides your services

Not everything in Norcross is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.

Compared with similar cities

The cities in this state closest in population that we cover. Read it for scale, not as a ranking: cities provide different services.

DoravilleGANorcrossGASt MarysGALagrangeGA
Residents16,36519,08620,54634,730
Top administrator's base payNot confirmed$225,000Not confirmedNot confirmed
Council member payNot confirmedNot confirmedNot confirmed$9,600
General fund per resident$1,532$1,235$1,059$1,299
Debt per resident$2,506$0$3,210$1,564
Unfunded pension per resident$626$117$7$323
City staff per 1,000 residents—7.88.813.1

Figures as shown in each city's section, divided by its population. Years differ by state, and pension figures are measured differently in each state (each city page says how). Doraville pays another agency for police or fire, so its own staff count is lower.

What Norcross publishes

What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.

  • Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe finance page posts the adopted FY2027 budget, plus monthly budget reports. City of Norcross
  • Yes: Council votes recorded member by member online City of Norcross · Sep 8, 2026
  • Partly: Council pay stated in a public documentThe FY2027 budget shows $79,200 for mayor and council pay combined, not per member. City of Norcross

Questions to ask your council

  1. Unassigned general fund reserves were $20,695,430 on August 31, 2025, and the city states no minimum. What reserve target should the council set?
  2. The general fund received a $5,870,000 transfer from the electric utility in FY2024-25. FY2026-27 budgets $1,940,816 in transfers in from the electric and hotel-motel funds. How much should power customers fund general services?
  3. The city had no long-term debt on August 31, 2025, but guarantees $9,865,000 of Downtown Development Authority bonds. What would the city owe if parking revenue fell short?
  4. The new city manager's base salary is $225,000 with six months' severance. How will the council measure her performance at the first review in September 2027?

The fiscal year runs September 1 to August 31. Staff presented the FY2027 budget to the council starting June 15, 2026. The council held a public hearing and adopted the budget and the 6.249-mill property tax rate on August 10, 2026. See who is running for council

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