Habersham County’s taxes are going up for next year. There is really no stopping it at this point.
Even if the tax digest had come out as projected, it’s not like the money comes from thin air. The folks whose properties would have gone up to form the 18.4 percent increase would be paying more taxes, even if not everyone is.
But now we are all in the same boat, as Habersham County’s commissioners and department heads look to finalize their budget in July with some modicum of a millage rate increase.
Data shared Monday night shows 57 percent of the revenue coming into the county comes from property taxes. Right now, our homeowners are shouldering the majority of the burden.
Many of the requests coming before county and city boards over the last few months have been zoning changes to accommodate new residential development. That kind of growth is needed, as we are in a housing crisis to go along with the gas crisis, the inflation crisis and all the other crises we are simultaneously battling.
But we do not want to become a bedroom community only. There has to be balance, or the tax burden will just be shoveled onto even more residents. And more residents means more children in our schools, and that means building more schools. That means more tax money, so the circle just keeps going round and round.
We need commercial industries to help bolster our tax base. To do this, we need the utmost cooperation between our county and cities – particularly on the south end of the county – to prepare the infrastructure to attract those businesses into Habersham County.
With the inland port coming to Hall County in the coming years – nine miles from our county line – the time is now to make a push to prepare our county for its future.
We don’t need apartments invading every untapped corner of this county. What we do need is business and industry to take advantage of our commercial strengths – our airport, our rail system and our positioning on a key highway corridor to Atlanta and beyond.
We have thriving businesses and industries in this county, but we need to bring in complementary industries to make us even stronger. And most of all, we have to help our homeowners by getting the majority of the tax burden off their backs.
Unfortunately, taxes are going up and they may go up again before it’s all over. Though, Habersham County is geographically blessed with a great quality of life for its residents. However, if you do not support helping existing business and industry grow while recruiting complimentary business and industry what you’re asking for is a heavier tax load for your shoulders and your neighbor’s, too.
There is work ahead to make that future a reality. The future rests in our hands.
Onward and upward.