The City Council of the City of Woodstock has advised that it will consider a partial property tax rollback at three public hearings at meetings during the month of August. The public hearings will be held on Monday August 8, Monday August 15 and Monday August 22, 2022 at the Chambers at City Center, 8534 Main Street Woodstock, GA 30188. The meetings begin at 7 PM.
The public hearings will be held in compliance with state legal requirements for a partial millage rate rollback. The fiscal year 2023 budget which took effect on July 1, 2022 was originally based upon a full rollback of the millage rate to 5.198 mills. Recent essential increases to police, public works, and parks and recreation compensation have resulted in a proposed partial rollback from the 2021 rate of 5.981 mills to 5.693 mills. These adjustments, approved on July 18, 2022 were necessary to remain competitive in a shrinking labor market while combatting increasing national inflation. This will be the tenth year in a row the City Council has held steady or reduced the millage rate.
“Our Council is once again lowering our property tax rate to protect our taxpayers from the effects of increasing property values. This year’s proposed reduction to 5.693 mills from 5.981 mills represents the lowest rate possible while also making an important investment in our city’s police officer pay,” said Mayor Michael Caldwell. “I am proud of Council for balancing these vitally important priorities to ensure we maintain some of the lowest taxes and remain one of the safest communities in the State of Georgia.”
Eligible property owners can file for a Homestead Exemption through the tax assessor’s office. This exemption provides a freeze on inflationary increase in value on certain taxes after the base year. For information on this exemption, please visit https://www.cherokeega.com/tax-assessors-office/homestead-exemptions/.
The estimated annual tax relief due to the proposed partial rollback to 5.693 mills compared to the tax valuations and estimated tax assessments property owners received based upon the current millage rate are as follows:
· Property owners with a fair market value of $350,000 can expect a $40.32 reduction compared to their received assessment estimates.
· Property owners with a fair market value of $575,000 can expect a $66.24 reduction compared to their received assessment estimates.
Citizens are encouraged to attend one of the three public hearings to provide input on the partial rollback.