Gwinnett settlement could mean tax hikes or cuts, depending on where you live

By David Wickert

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Residents of unincorporated Gwinnett County and some cities could see a property tax increase in 2013 as the county implements the settlement of a lawsuit with its 15 cities.

Other residents -- including those in Lawrenceville, Norcross and Suwanee -- could see a tax decrease because of the settlement, which was approved by a judge Thursday.

On Tuesday county and city officials in Gwinnett settled a three-year-old lawsuit over who provides and pays for police, fire and other services.

County Commission Chairwoman Charlotte Nash said it’s too soon to know the specific impact of the settlement on tax rates.

But she said the settlement, which will cost Gwinnett nearly $32 million over the next seven years, is better for taxpayers than a protracted legal battle that could have cost the county even more.

“I doubt there’s anybody who’s totally satisfied with it,” Nash said. “But we’re mighty pleased to be putting this litigation behind us.”

City officials had complained their residents paid county taxes for services they already received from city government. Nine Gwinnett cities, for example, have their own police departments, but city residents also helped pay for the Gwinnett County Police Department.

Gwinnett officials say city residents benefit from county services. But last September Enotah Judicial Circuit Court Judge David Barrett ruled that city residents don’t have to pay for services that primarily benefit residents of unincorporated Gwinnett.

The county appealed the decision, but negotiations continued. Barrett approved the settlement Thursday.

Under the agreement, Gwinnett will make one-time payments to the cities this year totaling about $10 million. It also will pay about $3.1 million a year for seven years, beginning this year.

The agreement also requires Gwinnett to establish four special service districts on Jan. 1, 2013:

-- A fire and emergency medical services district to pay for those services in all of Gwinnett except the city of Loganville, which has its own fire department.

-- A separate Loganville EMS district. The county will continue to provide EMS service to Loganville and will charge city residents for it separately.

-- A police district that includes unincorporated Gwinnett and the cities of Berkeley Lake, Buford, Dacula, Grayson, Rest Haven and Sugar Hill, which do not have their own police departments.

-- A district for planning and zoning, code enforcement and related services that includes only unincorporated Gwinnett.

Property taxes used to pay for those services won’t be affected this year, but Nash said that could change in 2013.

Residents who live in the Gwinnett portion of Loganville, for example, will no longer have to pay for county fire protection. Residents of cities with their own police departments won’t have to pay for most Gwinnett police services.

That means those residents could see their tax rates fall.

“It will finally bring some tax equity to our residents,” said Bob Baroni, city manager for Lawrenceville. “I believe it’s a great day for taxpayers in the cities and all over Gwinnett County.”

But residents of unincorporated Gwinnett and cities without police departments could see their tax rates rise. That’s because fewer people will be paying to support some services, Nash said.

Gwinnett officials also could decide to cut service levels instead of raising taxes.

“We’ll have to take a real hard look at what we can do to adjust for the smaller tax base that’s going to be covering those services,” Nash said. “It’s going to be the age-old budget question of balancing services with the cost of providing those services.”

Staff writer Joel Anderson contributed to this article.