Cobb school board approves increased millage rate

The Cobb Board of Education voted 7-0 Wednesday to approve an increased millage rate of 18.9 in spite of an appeal by board member David Banks to lower the rate to 18.8.

Banks said the school district has collected “an excess” in uncommitted fund balance of $81 million.

If the millage rate had been set at 17.825, then the school district would have collected the same revenue as last year and avoided an increase in property taxes.

The tax increase for a house with a fair market value of $225,000 is around $86 and the tax increase for non-homestead property with a fair market value of $325,000 is about $139.75.

In May, the school board approved a $944 million budget for Fiscal Year 2016, covering July 1 through June 30.

Based on a predicted enrollment of 111,751 students, the new budget includes no furlough days, a four percent raise for all employees and a full-step pay increase for all eligible employees.

The budget includes $924,876,857 in revenues and $944,876,857 in expenditures with the $20 million shortfall to come from revenue reserve.