The July 20 meeting of the Peachtree City Council came with a public hearing on the Fiscal Year 2018 budget that totals $34.88 million in revenues and is expected to be followed by a property tax reduction totaling .25 mills.
The .25-mill decrease is based on 4 percent growth in the tax digest, though there is an expectation that the digest will increase by 7 percent, said Finance Director Paul Salvatore.
Pictured at the July 20 meeting of the Peachtree City Council are, from left, Councilman Mike King, Mayor Vanessa Fleisch and council members Terry Ernst and Phil Prebor. Photo/Ben Nelms.
No full rollback of the windfall tax receipts is expected, according to City Manager Jon Rorie. Instead, the rollback will be partial, represented by the quarter-mill decrease in the tax rate.
The recent countywide property assessments resulted in an overall increase in property values of about 12 percent. Generally speaking, the local tax rate, if unchanged from last year, would bring in at least 7 percent more tax revenue for the city, absent a significant rollback in the rate. That 7 percent more money for city government would come from city property owners, resulting in a higher tax bill for most city taxpayers.
The only speaker at the public hearing was resident Bob Grove, who congratulated City Manager Jon Rorie and city staff on their work and the budget presentation.
The budget is proposed to include approximately $34.878 million in revenues and approximately $34.466 million in expenditures. The budget would result in a projected surplus of $411,343.
If approved, the proposal would result in a projected millage rate of 6.811 mills, representing a decrease of .254 mills over the current 7.065 rate.
Salvatore said revenues are expected to be up 4.03 percent for the coming year while expenditures are expected to increase 2.94 percent.
Noting that city employees had not received a cost-of-living adjustment since 2014, Rorie said this year he is asking for a 2 percent increase in January if budget targets are met. He will provide the council with those unaudited figures by the end of the year.
Rorie was adamant that the city needs to establish a merit increase methodology and, to that end, has included $186,000 for that purpose in the budget.
“We need a merit-based program to recognize the top performers that make a difference,” Rorie said. “Recognizing everyone equally is not merit.”
A portion of the budget presentation included taking a long-term view of city finances. Included in that discussion was the potential that the council might be able to lower the millage rate by nearly .6 mills over the next three years, and then stabilize the rate at 6.506 mills through FY 2022.
Salvatore during the discussion noted that the 2018 projected surplus, and that of the following two years, is essentially a ramp-up for the construction of the west side fire station in 2021. The cost of the new station is expected to be $1 million.
“We have a fiduciary responsibility to maintain the city’s assets,” Rorie told the council. “We can’t allow (those assets) to decline.”
The budget is set for tentative approval on Aug. 3 or 17, once tax digest figures have been confirmed.
