Franklin BOC to Hear from Mayors on Millage Equalization Resolution Tonight

Lavonia Mayor Courtney Umbehant will be representing all five municipalities in Franklin County when he goes before the Franklin County Board of Commissioners at their work session this evening to ask that the County equalize the millage rate for all citizens regardless of where they live.

Currently, people living in the five cities in Franklin County pay one millage more in property taxes than those living in unincorporated parts of the county.

That has been the case in Franklin County since the 1970s but recently, Mayor Umbehant had a resolution drawn up requesting the County drop the long-standing practice.

At the Lavonia City Council meeting earlier this month, the Mayor said he hoped other municipalities would join Lavonia in asking for the extra millage to be repealed.

Since then, the city councils in the four other municipalities, Royston, Canon, Carnesville, and Franklin Springs have voted to approve the resolution.

According to that Resolution, the State of Georgia collects an insurance premium tax on property insurance policies, remits a portion of the tax revenue to each county, and requires that the revenue be used in certain ways.

In reading the Resolution, the Mayor said that Franklin County uses that revenue from the insurance premium tax to roll back property taxes and property tax millage rates for those living in unincorporated areas, which the resolution states is unfair.

“…Whereas the use of insurance premium tax in Franklin County to roll back property tax millage rates in the unincorporated areas results in the City residents paying a higher county millage rate than the county residents while receiving limited and reduplicated services. And whereas we as elected officials in the cities of Franklin County object to this unfair burden on our citizens,” Umbehant read.

Currently, only 25 counties out of Georgia’s 159 counties still use the insurance premium tax revenue to roll back property taxes for citizens in unincorporated areas.

Franklin Springs Mayor Lee Moore said equalizing the millage rate for all citizens in Franklin County is not a new idea.

“Actually, this is something that has been discussed for several years – for the last three or four years. I and the previous (Royston) Mayor Jordan had talked about this. This is something we had talked about to try and get some relief for our citizens and get the millage back to where our citizens are paying the same millage rate as those in the county,” Mayor Moore said. And I commend (Mayor) Courtney for taking the initiative to stop kicking the can down the road and doing something about this.

Tonight’s Franklin County Board of Commissioners Work Session takes place at 6p at the Justice Center on the Royston Highway in Carnesville and is open to the public.