HIRAM, Ga. — A Georgia lawmaker is concerned that one of the cities in his district is on course to run out of money this year and now the city’s government could be at risk of being dissolved.
The Hiram City Mayor and Council posted a statement saying they’d been informed a legislator proposed dissolving the government and urged residents to reach out to their delegates in the Georgia General Assembly about it.
"A recent public advertisement, of which we were not informed, referencing a proposal by a state legislator to dissolve the City of Hiram will most likely raise understandable concerns among residents and current employees," the city said in part. “Because such an action would represent a significant and permanent change to our community, it is important that citizens clearly understand the practical, legal, and financial consequences that would result from this proposal.”
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The advertisement city officials referred to was a legal notice placed in the Dallas New Era, the legal organ for Paulding County.
The print advertisement reads that “Notice is given that there will be introduced at the 2026 regular session of the General Assembly of Georgia a bill to repeal an Act incorporating the City of Hiram, approved February 27, 1956 (Ga. L. 1956, p. 2620), as amended; and for other purposes.”
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Expanding on what could happen if the municipal government is dissolved, Hiram officials said it wouldn’t cancel any taxes, but would instead shift it to other governments, such as the county or potentially other nearby cities.
“In many cases, this shift results in higher costs and less local control for residents,” the city said.
Responding to the city’s statement directly, state Sen. Jason Anavitarte, who represents Hiram as part of his senate district in the legislature, said dissolving the city over debt in its current budget was only one option for solving the financial issues in question.
"When the city met with the delegation, the conversation included options that included dissolving if substantial debt of current budget based on city audit reports and city spend down of reserves of almost $2M was not addressed, while creating a new property tax to pay debt and costs bc of spending deficits by the city," Anavitarte wrote in part.
The lawmaker said communication to the city council by its delegation had been “very clear” about creating a new spending plan to address its budget deficits.
“Like we discussed, if you can’t manage your budget with no property taxes, why would the residents believe you can with a tax?” Anavitarte continued, adding that he looked forward to meeting with the city’s representatives the following week.
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