Baton Rouge council members press finance staff to explain millage calculations amid Saint George transition

Councilwoman Rocca pressed city-parish finance officials on Oct. 27, 2025, to explain how property tax millage rates translate into dollars after the council published proposed 2025 millage rates for East Baton Rouge Parish and the City of Baton Rouge.

The question came during a lengthy review of item 5 on the council agenda, the annual adoption of ad valorem tax millages. Finance staff read a list of rates for 2025 — including a 2.96-mill East Baton Rouge Parish operating tax, a 5.44-mill City of Baton Rouge operating tax, and a 9.89-mill East Baton Rouge Parish Library levy — and Rocca asked the office to explain what a single mill generates in different taxing jurisdictions.

The clarification matters because millage rates are reported as a per‑$1,000 measure of assessed value but generate widely different dollar amounts depending on whether the levy applies parishwide, to the city only, or to a restricted district. Rocca said confusion about those differences had produced misinformation online as Saint George’s proposed incorporation and boundary issues remain under discussion.

Finance staff (role: finance director; name not specified) told the council the budget book includes a glossary showing how to convert one mill to dollars. The director said a citywide mill produces a substantially different total than a parishwide mill, noting, “For a city, it’s about 2.3, and this is net of commissions,” meaning one mill in the city yields roughly $2.3 million (net of required tax-collection commissions), while parishwide or district levies will generate different totals based on the taxable base.

Using examples from the staff presentation, the council was given several approximate revenue conversions: the East Baton Rouge Parish Library’s 9.89 mills equates to about $31,800,000 in annual tax revenue (parishwide); by contrast, the Downtown Development District’s 9.5 mills produces about $725,000 for that district. Finance staff emphasized those are approximations derived from the budget book and depend on the taxing area’s total assessed value.

Rocca told the council she had seen social media claims that a downtown millage “is raking in $5,400,000,” and she quoted staff in rejecting that figure: “That’s not the case,” she said during the meeting.

The council also discussed why contractor-paid bus operators sometimes appear to earn more than city employees, with union leader Harold Greer (president, Local 3030) and council members briefly touching on pay-structure and benefits differences. Finance staff pointed out contractors typically do not receive the fringe benefits and pension that city employees receive, which affects apparent hourly pay comparisons.

The millage adoption was on the docket as item 5; the council approved the proposed millage rates by voice vote after a motion by Councilman Hudson and a second by Councilman Hurst. Council members were advised there was one emailed public comment in opposition to item 5.

The clarification came as the council is scrutinized publicly and in the news amid the unresolved Saint George transition; finance staff said some incorporation issues remain subject to further legal and court processes.

For residents, the council’s explanation underscores that the headline millage number alone does not show how much revenue a particular levy produces — the taxing area (parishwide, city, or district) and the taxable base determine the dollar effect.