Madison County officials outline risks and deadlines from House Bill 581; opt-out decision due March 1

Madison County officials and appraisal staff held a special call to review House Bill 581, the state measure that changes how homestead exemptions and annual adjustments are applied. Presenters warned the measure could cause sizable, compounding revenue losses for counties and school systems, force millage-rate increases and leave local governments with hard choices ahead of a March 1 opt-out deadline.

The meeting included presentations from Madison County Tax Commissioner Lamar Dalton, appraisers Robin Baker and Gary Cavalier, and Shane Higgs, chief appraiser from Hart County. County staff summarized modeling that used 2021 as a base year and projected revenue declines for county and school tax bases in successive years. Those exercises estimated combined county-and-school losses on the order of $2 million in 2022, about $5 million in 2023 and roughly $7 million in 2024, according to the presenters. The simulations indicated that the county portion alone would have required millage-rate increases of about 6.5% in the first year, 16.7% in the second year and roughly 20.8% in the third year to maintain current service levels.

Officials said the legislation freezes a property’s ‘‘base…