In a 3-2 vote, the board approved County Manager Charlie Horne's budget but agreed to provide some additional funding to restore two teachers at Sage Academy and to use some contingency to offset state budget cuts in teacher assistants.

The approximately $83 million budget is 4 percent less than the budget adopted for the current year and would maintain the tax rate at the current level of 62.19 cents. The owner of a $200,000 house will pay $1,243.80 in county property taxes.

The commissioners used $10,000 set aside to fund nonprofits to provide additional funds to Chatham Together!, a nonprofit that provides after-school programs for at-risk students, and to Family Violence & Rape Crisis Services to help offset funding cuts affecting its services.

Both nonprofits had presented information at a public budget hearing clarifying these needs.

In making the motion to approve the budget, Commissioner Pam Stewart said: "This budget continues the good stewardship that prevented us from being in a crisis situation when the recession hit. We have to maintain that solid foundation, while providing core services. We still have to survive state budget cuts that could be coming."