At a called meeting held September 26, the Bleckley County Board of Education set a tentative millage of 14.286 mills. It’s unchanged from last year. However, because the tax digest increased, it technically constituted a tax increase.
By law, that meant holding public hearings. The first, as part of a called meeting, was held Thursday night inside the high school auditorium. Just one person attended, County Commissioner candidate Eric Bisher. Board chair Kim Wright said at the beginning she didn’t take the lack of attendance lightly, stating she believed it meant the community believed they were doing the best job possible with the resources available.
Superintendent Dr. Steve Smith gave a presentation on the school’s financial situation. It included a chart showing Bleckley as one of the poorest school districts in the state. As to the rate, another chart showed Bleckley’s rate of 14.286 was on the lower end, one of 38 in the state to have a rate between 12 and 14 mills. A total of 135 of 180 districts were at 15 mills or above.
You may’ve heard Smith say they do the most with the least. To buttress that point, another chart showed 127 districts receive more money for students, 128 districts spend more. Bleckley though was fourth in Financial Efficiency Star ratings for 2019.
Smith also showed a pie chart of the FY21 budget, including the $1.6 million cut of state funding. An option they chose not to pursue to make up the lost state funding was to increase the millage rate by 6.06. According to the chart, property taxes will make up 13.8 percent of the budget.
He explained the Equalization Grant the district receives each year, including the law which states the board must have a millage rate of at least 14 to receive it. A lower rate would mean losing the grant, a loss of $3.1 million dollars.
The final charts included one which showed the current rate of 14.286 had been the same for the past three years, and another which showed the property tax increase based upon new assessments. A $50,000 home means an increase of $17.42, $100,000 of home and property means an increase of $34.84.
All the charts referenced by Smith can be seen here. https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Meetings/Attachment.aspx?S=4014&AID=1203814&MID=88292
There were no public comments on the presentation. Before the tax hearing, a proclamation was passed for the following special weeks in October. National 4-H Week, October 4-10. National School Lunch Week, October 12-16. National School Bus Safety Week, October 19-23.
Two more public hearings will be held on the millage rate on October 8 in the BOE meeting room at 11 am and 6 pm. A final called meeting will be held at 6:30 pm to set the final rate.
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