Residents oppose Fulton County’s proposed tax hike

The Fulton County Board of Commissioners rejected a proposed 12.5 percent property tax hike after hearing from thousands of outraged residents.

During its Wednesday meeting, the board approved a millage rate of 8.87 mills, dropping a proposal to raise it by a full mill.

Chairman Robb Pitts said in a letter to constituents that “thousands of citizens of Fulton County – from north to south – spoke out and sent a clear, unified message to the Board of Commissioners: Now is not the time for a tax increase!”

Residents from across the county and elected officials from several cities in the county, including Sandy Springs and Johns Creek, joined in opposition to the tax hike. The increased costs of living, with higher inflation, rising utility rates, and higher prices for goods and services, were given as reasons to drop the tax hike proposal.

Sandy Springs passed a resolution during its Aug. 5 meeting opposing the 12.49 percent property tax increase. The 1 mill increase would have generated $78.9 million in additional revenue through property taxes.

Related stories:
• Fulton property owners oppose tax hike proposal
• Fulton commissioners set tax rate ceiling higher than staff proposal

“Groceries are going up, healthcare is going up, all these things are going up. And then you’re going to increase our millage by 12 percent when we’re getting an increase of 2.5 percent. You’re going to price us out of our homes,” Sandy Springs resident Steve Poston said.

Cornelia Krieger and her husband moved from expensive New York City 10 years ago and found themselves in the same situation with the proposed tax hike.

“The taxpayers are not your bank. We should not have to pick between feeding our families and all the expenses that we have, and funding all of your projects,” Krieger said.

Before commissioners voted on the millage rate, they heard a mid-year budget report from Fulton County Chief Financial Officer Sharon Whitmore. She reported a projected increase in revenue of $15 million and a drop in expenses of $54 million. That would give the county a $69 million fund balance surplus. If the commissioners had adopted the 9.87 millage rate, the surplus would have been $148 million.

Whitmore detailed mid-year budget considerations that included $5.4 million for Fulton County Jail consent decree costs. However, unknown costs at the jail include a recruitment/retention plan, contraband and security plan, staffing, systems, and equipment.

Budget pressures also include

• Risk management premium increases
• Employees
• COLA (cost of living adjustments)
• Health Plan Impact
• New facilities
• New judges
• Implications from federal legislation
• Contractual increases
• Unfunded 2025 enhancement requests

“This is not a normal or a sound budget process,” Commissioner Mo Ivory said. “To say in January that we have zero surplus, and then to say in August we have $69 million is not sound or normal for our budget process.”

Ivory asked that the county adopt long-term planning of at least three years in advance.

County Manager Richard Anderson said he agreed with long-term planning. That would involve strategic decisions such as the renovation of the jail’s Rice Street facilities, construction of a new hospital in South Fulton, and the implementation of the U.S. Department of Justice jail consent decree items.

Commissioner Bridget Thorne reminded commissioners that in 2022, in her first year on the commission, it had a $22 million surplus. Commissioner Bob Ellis proposed reserving those funds for the jail. Instead, the commission spent $59 million, going $37 million over budget.

“So if you think we’re going to create $78 million in surplus and save it for the jail, good luck with that. Because it tends to be that commissioners are adding on those, spending $500,000 here, $1.7 million for the arts, a million for the veterans. All of that just starts getting thrown into the budget right away,” Thorne said.

Ivory, who proposed a maximum millage rate of 9.87 during the commission’s June 18 meeting, was the only commissioner to vote against the 8.87 millage rate.