The Bulloch County City Council voted to keep the present 8.625 millage rate for the 2027-2028 fiscal year. This comes after an outrage from citizens to keep the rate from rising to a 9.6 millage rate.
Locals like Kenneth Jackson and others went to the meeting to discuss their issues with the proposed rate.
However, this vote doesn’t come without setbacks. The proposed rate was to make up a $1.3 million unaccounted for budget gap that now must be closed in other measures.
The agreed upon method was to take money from the general fund instead of getting the funding through taxes. This general fund is what funds for most of the city’s services like police, fire and administration costs.
Another option proposed by City Manager Charles Penny was to let 60 employees go as over 75% of the general fund comes from salaries. However, everyone on the board did not want to fire anyone, saying that there are no non-essential jobs within the city.
Eagle News Reporter Dylan Waits takes a look into all of these issues.
