{"id":9309,"date":"2014-06-09T11:15:31","date_gmt":"2014-06-09T15:15:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/?p=9309"},"modified":"2014-06-09T11:18:18","modified_gmt":"2014-06-09T15:18:18","slug":"lowndes-millage-rate-still-low-compared-to-other-counties","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2014\/06\/lowndes-millage-rate-still-low-compared-to-other-counties.html","title":{"rendered":"Lowndes millage rate still low compared to other counties"},"content":{"rendered":"

\r\n\r\n<\/a>\r\nWhat’s the county’s current millage, and how does it compare to other counties?\r\nIndeed county employees are mostly underpaid, but are none overpaid?\r\nAnd where’s that employee compensation study the county paid for?\r\nThree curious omissions in an otherwise excellent VDT story.\r\n

\r\nMatthew Woody wrote for the VDT 28 May 2014,\r\n\r\nLowndes County weighs tax increase<\/a>,\r\n

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\r\nLowndes County Commission weighed the likelihood of raising the\r\nmillage rate Tuesday — the first such tax increase in 15\r\nyears.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\nDuring the past few years, all of the Lowndes County government\r\ndepartments have slashed their expenditures as razor thin as\r\npossible to meet revenues. During the Tuesday morning meeting,\r\ncounty commissioners discussed the Fiscal Year 2015 budget, and the\r\npossibility of a millage rate increase.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\nThe county’s proposed budget for the 2015FY is nearly $95 million in\r\nrevenues, and approximately $112 million in expenditures. In its\r\ngeneral fund, the county’s proposed revenue for the 2015FY is nearly\r\n$48 million, while expenditures are $50,563,122; the difference is\r\ndivided among the various county departments. Property tax goes into\r\nthe general fund revenue.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\nCounty officials said they will do whatever is necessary to continue\r\nservices even if that means a .93 percent increase in the county’s\r\nmillage rate.\r\n<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

\r\nAnd there’s this bit about past millage raises:\r\n

\r\n

\r\nCounty officials state, “In 1999, the incorporated millage\r\nrate was increased by 1.719 mils and the unincorporated millage\r\nrates was increased by 2.262 mils. This is a significant fact in\r\nthat while costs for goods and services have increased since 1999,\r\nLowndes County has continued to roll back the millage rate or at the\r\nvery least to hold it steady.”\r\n<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

\r\nBut the VDT story never says what the current millage rate is,\r\nor how it compares to other counties.\r\n

\r\nFortunately, the Georgia Department of Revenue (GA DOR) publishes online\r\n\r\nTax Digest Millage Rates<\/a>, “a report that has the actual millage rates for each taxing jurisdiction (city, county, fire, etc.)”.\r\nThat digest says Lowndes County’s unincorporated millage rate is\r\n7.303 mills.\r\nThat is indeed higher than Valdosta’s 4.102 or Hahira’s 4.750 or Lake Park’s 5.052 or Remerton’s 6.382,\r\nbut is about half the county school district’s 14.725 mills.\r\n

\r\nAnd Lowndes County’s 7.303 mills is way lower than Dougherty County’s 11.894 mills\r\nand even with the proposed increase, 7.303 + 0.93 = 8.233 mills is\r\nonly slightly higher than Thomas County’s 8.118 mills.\r\n

\r\nIn fact, Lowndes County comes in about number 28 among Georgia’s 159 counties\r\nfor county unincorporated taxes. I say “about” because the \r\nGA DOR table has no county unincorporated figures for Clarke or Muscogee\r\nand appears to be missing a county.\r\nOf those listed, Walker County is lowest at 4.705 and Rockdale County is highest at 20.700 mills.\r\n

\r\nEven the proposed increased Lowndes County rate of 8.233 mills\r\nwould still be lower than the surrounding counties:\r\n