City Council

City of Bowdon Public Hearing and Mayor and Council Meeting Monday, September 11, 2023 10:00AM Mayor and Council Chambers, 182 Grammar School Road I.- VI. Agenda Items: The Mayor and City Council met for a called meeting and first Public Hearing for the millage rate on Monday, September 11th, 2023. The meeting was called to order by Mayor Jim Chaffin at 10:00AM. It was decided to skip the invocation and Pledge of Allegiance. Members present: Mayor Jim Chaffin Mayor Pro-tem Jan Johnson Councilmember Marty Johnson Councilmember Wes McEntyre Staff present: City Manager Gary Bullock Absent: Councilmember Randy Saxon City Clerk Susan Pierce V. Public Hearing A. 2023 Millage Rate Increase – Mr. Bullock gave out graphs showing the changes in the millage rate in recent years, the changes in LOST revenue, the changes in police department budget versus the LOST and property tax, and the changes in sanitary service. There are also a large number of appeals due to the higher assessments this year. He recommends either a partial rollback or no rollback in the millage rate. A 50% partial rollback would be 6.86. The current rate is 7.302, and the full rollback is 6.418. Councilmember McEntyre asked what the revenue difference would be in the 6.418 and the 6.86. Mr. Bullock said if the digest stays the same, the difference would be $32,500. Councilmember Marty Johnson would like to know how it will affect a taxpayer with property valued at $100,000. Carroll County Commissioner Danny Bailey was present, and Mr. Bullock invited him to speak concerning the county’s appeal to the State on the property valuations. He stated that the county has the right to appeal property valuations just like the citizens do. The State said Carroll County’s valuations were too low based on their criteria. They want a score of between 36 and 44 percent. They want you to be above 38 percent; anything below, and the county is penalized. Out of 159 counties, 117 fell in the same category we did where the valuations were not high enough based on the state’s criteria. The county is appealing, but it could take 1-6 months to resolve the issue. If we lose the appeal, the county will have to artificially inflate property values to get them up to the 38 percent mark. If we win, we will stay where we are now. The chief county appraiser, Mr. Hubert Sparks, feels sure the county will win the appeal. Mr. Bailey also stated that if the county loses the appeal, it won’t affect taxes this year. Mr. Bullock said he will have the numbers tonight for the impact on taxpayers based on a property value of $100,000. Councilmember McEntyre stated that the City’s revenue has gone up every year, even in the years we have taken the rollback. Mr. Bullock noted that expenses have also increased. Mr. McEntyre stated  City of Bowdon Mayor & Council Meeting Minutes September 11, 2023 that we can manage our expenses. Councilmember Marty Johnson said that some expenses can not be managed, such as gasoline prices, and salary increases. He also said that he was leaning with the 50% rollback so that we can keep up with inflation and stay within our budget. VI. Other Business None. VII. Public Comments None. Mayor Chaffin asked if there was a motion to adjourn. Motion by Mayor Pro-tem Jan Johnson to adjourn the council meeting; second by Councilmember McEntyre; motion carried unanimously. X. Adjournment _________________________ ________________________ Mayor Jim Chaffin City Manager Gary Bullock