The DeKalb County Commission on Tuesday announced a 4.5-mil tax hike , and then pledged to find ways to cut the increase before a final vote in July.
“This is not the board of commissioner's millage rate; this is the CEO’s,” Commissioner Lee May said. “Personally, I think we have to have more cuts. It’s either that or we find more revenue, and I don’t think that’s going to happen.”
Chief Executive Burrell Ellis called for a 4.5-mil increase as the rate ceiling last week but said his proposed budget needs a slightly smaller hike of 4.35 mils.
The higher increase adds about $93 more per year to the average county home worth $155,000. The average home last year, before values plunged countywide, was worth $200,000.
roperty values, however, held fairly steady in a few areas, including most of Dunwoody. For residents whose home value didn't move at all, the 27-percent rate hike translates into a 47-percent tax increase.
That’s $451 more per year for a home in which its value remained at $300,000 last year and this year. It adds $286 per year for a home worth $200,000 and $121 for a home worth $100,000 in both years, according to commission calculations.
"A 45- or 50-percent increase in taxes for my constituents is unacceptable," said Commissioner Elaine Boyer, who supplied the only no vote involving the millage-rate increase. "I prioritize public safety and public works, but I am open to more cuts elsewhere, even if it means hurting quality of life programs."
Ellis said he is open to making additional reductions beyond those in his proposal, such as closing satellite tax offices and phasing out the county's cooperative extension.
Commissioners complain those changes aren't what they want. They have asked for outsourcing plans or a long-range projection for how to shrink the government to no avail.
Ellis said he has heard the requests and is addressing them. His proposal includes privatizing five recreation centers, and other departments are under review.The proposal also includes $23 million in spending cuts on top of the $100-plus million that Ellis said he has made since taking office nearly three years ago.
"The truth of the matter is we've already cut 696 positions and made $100 million in spending cuts since I became CEO and we are still delivering the essential services," Ellis said. "I call that being extraordinarily efficient."
The commission must adopt its final tax rate by July 12 in order to get tax bills out by mid-August. The first payment would be due by Sept. 30 and the second and final installment by Nov. 15.
"We can't just hold our breath and hope to weather this for a year," Commissioner Jeff Rader said. "We have to structurally change our government for years to come. This is just the starting point."
No residents spoke out about the tax rate during Tuesday's public comment session. However, the county must hold at least three public hearings on the issue before its July vote. The first meeting is set for 10 a.m. July 5 at the Maloof Auditorium in Decatur.
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