Jones County board approves tentative millage rates for advertisement, votes 4-1

Jones County commissioners voted 4-1 on Aug. 5 to set tentative millage rates for advertisement as part of the annual budget and tax-setting process. The board set a tentative rollback rate of 12.963 mills for unincorporated county property and 14.219 mills for incorporated areas, and authorized advertising those rates.

The vote begins the formal millage process that will include required public hearings and further budget decisions. “So about this time each year, the board has to decide on a millage rate to advertise in the newspaper,” said Mr. Ed, speaking to the board, describing the start of the budget and millage-rate setting process and noting that a board may adopt a lower rate afterward but must restart the process to raise a rate above the advertised level.

County staff discussed how a full rollback from last year’s levies would reduce the millage from 14.7 mills in the unincorporated county to 12.963 and from 16.061 to 14.219 in incorporated areas. Officials said the rollback scenario would still generate additional revenue compared with last year; board members referenced an approximate increase of about $771,000 in new tax revenue tied to the rollback figures discussed during the meeting.

Commissioners debated how the proposed rates interact with a countywide property revaluation scheduled for completion next year. Several commissioners said rolling back the millage in the first year of a multi-year revaluation program can blunt the immediate impact on taxpayers while allowing assessed values to normalize over time. One commissioner described the process as essentially three years, saying that not rolling back in the first year could provoke public outcry if valuations rise and tax collections increase.

Board members also raised the cost of the upcoming countywide revaluation, which one commissioner estimated would cost in the “600 and something thousand to almost maybe 8 or 900,000” range and noted that the county needs to fund that expense from the budget.

Following discussion, a commissioner moved to “accept the tentative millage rate, for advertising purposes, for 12.963 for the unincorporated and 14.219 for the incorporated.” The motion was seconded and carried on a 4-1 vote.

The advertisement of tentative millage rates triggers the next legally required steps in the county’s budget calendar: public notice and public hearings on any proposed increase over the rollback rate, and subsequent hearings before final adoption. County staff told commissioners they could adopt a lower rate at a later date but would need to re-open the process to adopt a higher rate than advertised.

Commissioners said they planned to continue a cautious budgeting approach for the coming fiscal year, given uncertain revenues and a significant health-insurance cost increase the county is projecting.