HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — The Houston County Board of Commissioners announced they are planning to raise additional revenue from county property owners, but residents have a chance to provide their input on the changes to the county's millage rate before the rate goes into effect.
The average home in Houston County has gone up in value, according to a press release from the county.
When that happens, the Board of Commissioners is required by law to calculate what millage rate is required to keep property tax income the same for the county. But the county is planning on making the millage rate 5.46% above the "rollback rate."
One millage is a tax of $1 per $1,000 in a property's value, but it is applied typically to only 40% of a property's value. While the current millage rate is 9.810 mills and the millage rate proposed by the county is 9.56 mills. That means the average property owner is likely to have a higher tax bill.
Because the county will raise more money from property owners, they are required by law to call the change a property tax increase.
To keep the county's property tax revenue the same, the county could roll back the millage rate to 9.066 mills and maintain the same amount of property tax revenue.
That means a homeowner who has a house worth $150,000 would have to pay $544 in property taxes under the rollback millage that would keep county property tax revenue the same.
But under the county's proposed millage, that same homeowner now would be on the hook for around $574, or about $30 more.
But the county says that the budget approved by the Board of Commissioners would need to be higher than that rollback millage to keep the county funded.
Before the new millage rate goes into effect, the county is holding public meetings where residents can express their thoughts on the proposed millage rate.
The first meeting takes place at the Houston County Courthouse on Aug. 8 at 9 a.m., but there will be other meetings as well at the Houston County Annex Building on Aug. 15 at 6 p.m. and 9 a.m.