Two additional public hearings have been scheduled to allow for citizen input on the Clarke County School District’s proposal to not reduce the millage rate for the 2024 fiscal year.
The millage rate and the property value are two main factors that determine a person’s property tax. The school board initially planned to finalize the budget for FY24 on June 1st, but now has postponed the final vote to allow time for the two public hearings.
Board members who are proponents of lowering the millage rate, which currently stands at 18.8 mills, argue that not rolling back the millage rate would result in higher taxes for homeowners the following year. Board members on the opposite side of the argument say that the tax money that would be saved if the millage rate is reduced, is not considerable enough.
The millage rate is an important factor in funding the proposed FY2024 budget of $214,145,443. While the millage rate that is proposed in the tentative FY2024 budget is the same as the current rate, it is higher than the rollback rate. The rollback rate is the rate that would be used to collect the same amount of taxes collected in the previous fiscal year.
As there is an expected increase of 15.8% for property taxes imposed in the previous year, if the millage rate is kept at 18.8 mills, there would be an increase in overall property tax collections by 2.5 mills. This would cause an increase in property taxes for Clarke County homeowners.
The hearings will take place June 28th and 29th at 6 pm.
