Only one member of the public spoke at the Board of Education’s first public hearing for their proposed property tax increase.
Last week, the Board of Education announced its intention to maintain the maintenance and operations millage rate for fiscal year 2026 at 15.41, which was first set in fiscal year 2024.
Levying the 15.41 mills means the Board of Education will increase this year’s levied property taxes by 4.04 percent over the rollback millage rate.
According to a press release from the school system, when the total digest of taxable property is prepared, Georgia law requires that a rollback rate must be computed that will produce the same total revenue on the current year’s digest that last year’s millage rate would have produced had no reassessments occurred.
This calculation would require the board rollback its millage rate from 15.41 mills to 14.81 mills, the press release continues. Since the board has elected not to rollback its millage rate, they must advertise their intent to increase the property taxes it will levy this year by 4.04 percent over the rollback millage rate.
The hearing, held Thursday at 7:30 a.m. at 167 Werz Industrial Blvd., was the first of three public hearings the Board of Education is required to hold under Georgia law.
One member of the public, Eugene Penson, expressed concern about increasing property taxes.
As a senior citizen on fixed income, Penson said an increase in property taxes would put further strain on his finances.
Superintendent Dr. Evan Horton reminded Penson that if he is over 75 years old, he would receive a full exemption from school taxes if the board’s proposed senior exemptions are passed on the November 2025 ballot.
All concerned citizens are invited to the remaining public hearings on this tax increase to be held at the Board of Education Office at 167 Werz Industrial Blvd. on Aug. 7, 2025, at noon and 6:30 p.m.
