The Valdosta Board of Education has tentatively adopted a 2024 millage rate which will require an increase in property tax by 27.23 percent. This tentative increase will result in a millage rate of 14.068 mills, an increase of 3.011 mills. Without this tentative increase, the millage rate will be no more than 11.057 mills. The proposed tax increase for a home with a fair market value of $175,000 is approximately $192.70 and the proposed tax increase for non-homestead property with a fair market value of $275,000 is approximately $331.21.
Each year, the board of tax assessors is required to review the assessed value for property tax purposes of taxable property in the county. When the trend of prices on properties that have recently sold in the county indicate there has been an increase in the fair market value of any specific property, the board of tax assessors is required by law to re-determine the value of such property and adjust the assessment. This is called a reassessment.
When the total digest of taxable property is prepared, Georgia law requires a rollback millage rate be computed that will produce the same total revenue on the current year’s digest that last year’s millage rate would have produced had no reassessment occurred.
The budget tentatively adopted by the Valdosta Board of Education requires a millage rate higher than the rollback millage rate; therefore, before the Valdosta Board of Education may finalize the tentative budget and set a final millage rate, Georgia law requires three public hearings to be held to allow the public an opportunity to express their opinions on the increase.
All concerned citizens are invited to the public hearing on the tax increase to be held at the Valdosta Board of Education, 1204 Williams St., Valdosta, GA on September 17, 2024 at 12:00 pm and 6:00 pm. Times and places of additional public hearings on this tax increase are at W.G. Nunn Elementary School, 1610 Lakeland Ave., Valdosta, GA on September 24, 2024 at 5:00 pm.
