Lee commissioners adopt 29.71-mill tax levy, including school bond payments

LEESBURG — Lee County commissioners adopted a combined county and school property tax rate of 29.71 mills Monday, formalizing a levy that includes 17.96 mills for school operations and a separate 0.58-mill charge to repay school bonds.

The board approved the school system’s combined 18.54-mill levy and the overall county tax resolution in separate votes during an Oct. 19 special called meeting. Both motions carried without opposition.

The final levy consists of 11.17 mills for county government operations, 17.96 mills for school maintenance and operations and 0.58 mills for principal and interest on countywide school bonds.

That breakdown explains why the school rate presented to commissioners was higher than the 17.96-mill operating rate adopted by the Lee County Board of Education on Oct. 15. The 18.54-mill figure combines school operations and bond repayment. It does not represent another increase in the operating rate.

The school board voted 4-0 Thursday to adopt the 17.96-mill operating levy, reducing its initial proposal of 18.96 mills by 1 mill. The adopted operating rate is 2 mills higher than last year’s 15.96 mills.

The resolution’s total lines list the school portion as 19.54 mills, a figure carried over from the school board’s original proposal. County Clerk Kaitlyn Good confirmed the correct figure is 18.54 mills, which produces the adopted 29.71-mill total.

During Monday’s meeting, Commissioner Billy Mathis addressed questions about the commission’s authority over the school portion of property taxes.

“Just so there’s no confusion, we’ve had a couple of people ask about our role in setting the millage rate,” Mathis said. “The school board sets their own millage rate, and we have absolutely no discretion but to adopt whatever millage they adopt.”

No one signed up to speak during the meeting’s public forum.

The county’s portion of the resolution begins with a gross operating rate of 14.55 mills. A 3.38-mill rollback for revenue from the 1% local-option sales tax reduces that figure to the final county operating levy of 11.17 mills, down from 12.317 mills last year.

That rollback is a reduction in the property tax rate, not an additional charge. The county operating levy supports the fiscal year that began July 1 and ends June 30, 2027.

The resolution lists identical county and school rates for incorporated and unincorporated areas. It includes no state millage and does not list separate municipal property taxes.

What it means for a tax bill

One mill equals $1 in tax for every $1,000 of taxable assessed value. Georgia assesses property at 40% of its fair market value, so a home valued at $250,000 has an assessed value of $100,000.

At the combined 29.71-mill rate, $100,000 in taxable assessed value would generate $2,971 in county and school taxes. Of that amount, $1,117 would support county operations, $1,796 would support school operations and $58 would go toward school bond repayment.

The combined rate rose from 28.857 mills in 2025. For that $250,000 home, with no change in value and before exemptions or credits, the annual county and school tax would increase from $2,885.70 to $2,971 — a difference of $85.30.

The 2-mill school operating increase would add $200 to that example bill, while the county’s 1.147-mill reduction would save $114.70. The separate school bond levy remains unchanged at 0.58 mills.

Although the combined rate is slightly below 2024’s 30.144 mills, that does not mean property owners will pay less than they did two years ago. Reassessments have increased property values, and a lower millage applied to a higher taxable value can still produce a larger bill.

For example, a property without a homestead exemption — such as a rental house or second home — that rose in value from $250,000 last year to $265,000 this year would be assessed at $106,000. It would generate $3,149.26 in county and school taxes before exemptions and credits, compared with $2,885.70 last year. That would be an increase of $263.56, or about 9.1%.

Homesteaded properties are partly shielded from rising values. The county opted in to Georgia’s floating homestead exemption last year, which limits annual increases in a homesteaded property’s county taxable value to the rate of inflation. Other homestead exemptions can also reduce taxable values, sometimes differently for each portion of the levy.

Refunds or credits can also affect the amount owed, and properties inside Leesburg and Smithville city limits may face separate municipal taxes.

The next regular meeting of the Lee County Board of Commissioners is 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 27.