Officials in Texarkana, Texas are going into the next fiscal year, with a balanced budget, but it didn't come easy. They were facing a $1.4 million deficit, they say, due to increased expenses.

Officials say they looked into several options to balance the budget, including decreasing expenditures by more than seven percent, or that amount of $1.4 million.But, they opted for another solution. They transferred a little over $1 million  from the water department, $700,000 from the economic development fund and, reduced the overall general fund by $600,000.

"We were wanting to first of all, not implement a tax increase on our citizens and at the same time we wanted to try to maintain a high level of service," said Mayor Bob Bruggeman. "We feel like what we've done will be able to accommodate those two needs."

Officials say they now plan to examine each city department on a monthly basis, to determine areas that can be cut next year. The budget takes effect on October first.