Johns Creek holds first public hearing on 2025 millage rate; officials outline digest and rate options

Johns Creek held the first of three required public hearings on the city's 2025 millage rate as staff walked the council and public through how Fulton County's tax digest and reassessments affect local property taxes.

Assistant City Manager Kaye Love, presenting the staff slides, said the preliminary 2025 digest from Fulton County is $6,520,000,000, an increase of $326,000,000 (5.525%) over 2024, with $276,000,000 attributed to reassessment of existing property and $50,000,000 to new growth. "For 2025, the preliminary digest that we received from Fulton County is $6,520,000,000," Love said. She noted that the city's advertised M&O millage is 3.646 mills and the calculated rollback rate is 3.492 mills.

Love explained the distinction between advertised rates and the rate the council ultimately adopts, saying state law requires the city to advertise a worst-case amount based on full digest growth. She also described how assessed value is calculated (40% of fair market value) and how homestead exemptions and the floating homestead cap affect taxable value.

The presentation showed Johns Creek's city portion of millage is among the lowest in Fulton County and that property tax revenue represents roughly 27% of the city's general fund. Staff reiterated that the public hearings are informational and do not set the final millage; the council will take further action later in the budget process. The city will hold additional hearings as noticed; staff identified another hearing today at 6 p.m. and a third hearing on July 28 at 7 p.m., when the council meets.