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The White County Board of Commissioners adopted a Fiscal Year 2021-2022 budget with no plans to raise the current millage rate used to calculate property taxes.
The White County Board of Commissioners adopted a Fiscal Year 2021-2022 budget with no plans to raise the current millage rate used to calculate property taxes.
Commissioners signed off on the spending plan at a June 28 meeting following the county’s second budget hearing. No one from the public offered comments.
The roughly $27.9 million total budget includes a general fund of almost $22.5 million. The county projects about $1.4 million from its fund balance savings to cover the difference in revenues and expenditures. The county has a current fund balance available of nearly $4.8 million.
“This budget takes into account that there will be no millage increase in July, the end of August, when we set our millage rate,” said Board Chairman Travis Turner.
If that holds, the rate would stay at 10.75 for the fourth consecutive budget cycle. Commissioners will consider formally setting the millage rate later using finalized tax digest figures from the county tax assessor’s office.
Departments found under the general fund include agriculture ($66,111), culture and recreation, ($1,137,246), general government ($4,722,042), health and welfare ($686,523), housing and development ($585,442), judicial ($1,881,722), public safety ($11,017,950) and public works ($1,797,011). Finance Director Jodi Ligon noted the budget includes seven new positions and cost increases related to employee health insurance.
The general fund also includes $600,000 for planned employee pay raises. Turner said that includes a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment and potentially another 2.5% merit raise that is based on employee performance reviews.
The remaining $5.4 million of the budget includes separate funds, which includes monies related to items such as hotel/motel tax, debt service funds from SPLOST, regional drug task force and the Enotah Judicial Circuit.
The $27.9 million total budget is an 11% increase from the current amended budget, which was a slightly modified version of the FY2019-2020 budget. Commissioners chose to essentially keep the same budget last year due to financial uncertainties at that time related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“... You have to think about that we’re actually covering any increases for two years and not just the one year,” Ligon said.
The county’s new fiscal year budget begins July 1.