Habersham County property owners are looking at a potential millage rate increase this year. County commissioners are proposing a 1 mill increase, from 11.682 to 12.682 mills. That could translate into an approximate $100 annual increase for the average homeowner.
The county announced the proposed tax hike last week as being “16% over the rollback millage rate.”
“The State’s requirements make us advertise the increase as a percentage which often seems like a large amount but in the grand scheme of the Tax Digest the increase is smaller than it seems,” explains Habersham County Finance Director Tim Sims.
According to the Tax Assessor’s Office, the average residential property value is $150,000. A homeowner with a Homestead exemption will see an average increase of approximately $98 on their tax bill. This increase averages out to about $8.17 per month or $0.27 cents a day for the year. If there is no Homestead exemption for the homeowner, then the increase will be approximately $101 per year. That increase averages out to about $8.42 per month or $0.28 cents a day for the year.
Even without a millage rate increase, most homeowners were already eyeing higher property tax bills due to reassessments.
New hires and inflation
The proposed tax hike is necessary to fully fund next year’s budget, Sims says. That budget includes 24 news positions, 17 of them for public safety including the sheriff’s office, code enforcement, and animal control.
“The County is facing the same issues the citizens are with increasing fuel and supply costs in the U.S. currently. Additionally, anything that is made with petroleum products (plastic, EMS supplies, asphalt, etc.) has nearly doubled in cost and we as a county must procure these items to continue operations in order to serve our citizens in the manner they desire.”
Sims illustrates his point, noting that the county’s Road Resurfacing Program recently bid out 40.2% higher than last year.
“It is a daily struggle to keep costs down as they change so quickly,” he says.
In addition to the proposed millage rate increase, the county is pitching its plan for a transportation special local option sales tax. If voters approve the T-SPLOST referendum in November, the county’s sales tax rate would rise from 7% to 8% next April.
Public hearings
Public hearings are scheduled on both tax increase proposals in the coming weeks as follows:
- July 11 at 6 p.m.: Millage Rate Hearing 1 of 3 – Courthouse
- July 12 at 10 a.m.: Roads and Bridges SPLOST Town Hall – Cornelia Community House
- July 18 at 11 a.m.: Millage Rate Hearing 2 of 3 – Administrative Building
- July 18 at 4:30 p.m.: Board of Commissioners Work Session – Administrative Building
- July 18 at 6 p.m.: Millage Rate Hearing 3 of 3 – Courthouse
- July 18 after Millage Rate Hearing: Habersham County Board of Commissioners are expected to adopt the county’s new millage rate during their regular commission meeting – Courthouse
- July 20 at 6 p.m.: Roads and Bridges SPLOST Town Hall – HEMC Clarkesville Headquarters
In addition to the public hearings, there will be Facebook Live Virtual Q & A Sessions on T-SPLOST at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, July 6 and Wednesday, July 13 on the Habersham County Facebook page.
SEE ALSO
Habersham County moves forward with plans for T-SPLOST vote in November
