MACON, Ga. — Macon-Bibb commissioners will be discussing some big changes in Tuesday’s upcoming meeting. From paying employees who got vaccinated, to dropping the millage rate; here’s what you need to know.
Mayor Lester Miller plans to introduce an incentive to employees who are vaccinated. If passed, Miller says full-time employees will get $500 and part-time employees will get $250.
The mayor says they’re looking to allocate $800,000 from American Rescue Plan funds for the program.
“The bottom line is we’ll show some evidence that we lost several million dollars because of people not being vaccinated or getting sick with COVID. We suffered over $2 million in medical expenses out of pocket by the county alone,” said Miller.
Another big topic on the agenda is increasing the minimum wage for county employees.
The mayor says he hopes the commission can bump it up to $14 an hour by Jan. 2022 and $15 an hour by the beginning of 2023.
Commissioners will also discuss the pay scale. The mayor says they want to increase salaries for first responders based on the amount of years they’ve worked with the county.
“We believe this will be a good way to retain deputies,” he said.
And Bibb County is looking to cut the millage rate, which would decrease property taxes.
Miller says it would move from 20.331 to 19.901, and that it will drop even more if voters pass the OLOST – a special penny sales tax – in November.
“If the OLOST passes, we’ll certainly be the lowest we’ve ever been for a consolidated Macon-Bibb County, and probably the lowest in Middle Georgia,” said Miller.
The commission will meet 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Macon-Bibb Government Center.
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