City Schools of Decatur opened the first of three public millage-rate hearings at 9 a.m. with a presentation from Dr. Broom, the district's chief financial officer, explaining that the district has tentatively adopted a millage rate of 20.3 for fiscal year 2026 and that the computed rollback rate is 19.083.

Dr. Broom said the 20.3 mills figure is 1.217 mills higher than the rollback rate and represents a 6.38% increase in property tax revenue compared with the rollback calculation. Using the district's examples, he said the tentative increase would be approximately $426 annually for a home with a fair market value of $700,000 and about $548 for nonhomestead property with a fair market value of $900,000; he said the average increase equates to about $61 per $100,000 of assessed value.

The presentation cited legal requirements under Georgia Code 48-5-32.1 and the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (Senate Bill 177, Act 431, effective Jan. 1, 2000) that trigger public-hearing and notice obligations whenever a levying authority proposes a millage rate above the rollback rate. Dr. Broom said the district published required advertisements in the Champion newspaper and on the district's website and described the five-year levy history included in the notice.

Dr. Broom reviewed budget figures the board is considering for fiscal year 2026, saying total expenditures exceed total revenues by $3,100,000 and that the district projects an ending fund balance of approximately $17,700,000 after drawing down the beginning fund balance. He identified spending items the tentative millage rate is intended to support, including funding state unfunded mandates for health benefits and teacher retirement increases, life insurance and competitive salary increases for full-time employees, investments in safety and security, special education and instruction, the addition of six school-based positions, one executive director position in the deputy superintendent's office, and three school resource officers contracted from the City of Decatur.

The board's tentative decision to maintain the 20.3-mill rate for fiscal year 2026 was described in the presentation; the presentation also reiterated that the final adoption of the millage rate is scheduled for June 20 at 6:30 p.m. Dr. Broom said the second hearing is scheduled for 6:15 p.m. the same day as the presentation and the third hearing will be at 6 p.m. on June 20, with all hearings held virtually and links posted on the district website. The presentation closed with a note that the budget book will be printed and that a budget feedback link is available on the district website.

Opening and closing formalities were conducted by Dr. Soltan (presiding board member), who called the meeting to order at 9 a.m. and adjourned the hearing after no members of the public registered to comment during the virtual session. The administrative team indicated it will follow up with members of the public who submit questions or comments through the district's feedback channels.

The hearing record and the presentation slides provided the numerical calculations and legal citations described above; board action on final adoption remains scheduled for the June 20 board meeting.