by Hannah Caudell
Four people spoke during Cornelia’s first of three public hearings Tuesday night regarding the city’s proposed millage rate increase.
City commissioners are considering raising the millage rate by two mills, from 9.5 mills to 11.5 mills. The city has maintained its 9.5 millage rate since 2023, but with general inflationary costs coupled with a large amount of tax assessment appeals and refunds, city officials are now trying to balance an over $800,000 deficit in the proposed budget draft for next year. The city has already cut that deficit down from about $1.9 million, according to City Manager Dee Anderson and City Finance Director Melanie Chandler. And, for the first time in his government career spanning almost three decades, Anderson said the rollback rate for Cornelia this year — 9.51 mills — is actually higher than the millage rate the city already has.
Some residents, like Sonja Crawford, asked about the possibility of using a Floating Local Option Sales Tax (FLOST) penny to help fund a rollback of the millage. By Anderson’s estimates, a FLOST approved in the city would help roll the millage rate back by four mills if city and county residents vote for the penny tax in November.
Other residents urged commissioners to ask the tax assessor board why the city, along with Baldwin and Tallulah Falls, saw such a reduction in assessment values. For Cornelia specifically, Anderson said the city saw a reduction of $1.6 million in assessment values during the meeting.
In other business, commissioners unanimously approved to post an amendment to the zoning ordinance regarding accessory buildings for comment. Commissioners also approved the purchase of an automatic gate at the city’s Moss Street property along with a budget adjustment for the purchase, and authorized Mayor John Borrow to sign off on a modification to the promissory note and loan agreement for a Georgia Environmental Finance Authority loan.