For the first time since the City of Flemington was chartered in 1941, officials will vote to impose a millage rate on local property owners. If passed for 2025, the tax would not be collected until 2026, according to the Liberty County Tax Commissioner’s office.
The final public hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 12 at City Hall, 156 Old Sunbury Road. The council will vote on whether to pass the millage rate at a special called meeting set for 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 17.
Residents packed the first hearing Dec. 5 wearing Army uniforms, leaning on canes, or toting toddlers to express their displeasure at the proposed 100 percent property tax increase advertised in public notices.
From 0 to 100
Two common misunderstandings drove citizen discontent at the hearing. Any amount above 0 constitutes a 100% increase when there’s never been a millage rate before. Also, a millage (1/1000) is not a percentage (1/100) — a mistake that often comes up whenever local governments announce their proposed millage rates for the coming year.
The proposed 3.514 millage rate, if passed, would raise an estimated $306,160 to keep the city running. For someone with a house valued at $100,000, that translates into $140.56 per year, or $11.71 per month.
Richard King, who is retired and disabled, said, “The reason that I built my house on the corner of Wallace Martin and Joe Martin in 1995, one of the reasons, was it’s a small community, and there were no city taxes, and I like that.”
Councilman David Edwards explained that the city has had major expenses, particularly a payment of over $500,000 to the cost of a new fire engine for the Hinesville Fire Department. In exchange, Hinesville reduced the cost of fire coverage for five years in Flemington. Since 2012, Flemington has depended on Hinesville for city fire coverage. Impact fees from construction also help defray fire coverage costs, Edwards said. The city also offers police services, which costs about $175,000 annually.
Resident David Humphries said he was “50-50 on the tax” but that he wants Flemington to be the kind of place his children will want to live.
“I’m going to have my ashes be under the house. I’m not going anywhere anytime soon,” he said. “So it is important to me, and to make sure my family, you know, when I’m not here any longer, wants to continue to be here.”
After the meeting, resident Jimmie Causer said, “They want to do these meetings, and they say what they want, they’re gonna do, what they’re gonna do, the only way to, only way to take care of that, is to get rid of them, to vote them out.”
Planning for growth
Flemington wants to invest in a development plan for a future downtown district, some of which would be on property the city already owns. Nearby, the long-awaited Publix is under construction but not yet bringing in sales tax. The Wawa convenience store about to open is only partly in Flemington, with most of the store in Hinesville. Flemington also saw the World of Beer open in November.
Not all residents were on board with the planning expense and some asked whether the city was developing or buying land for the project. But officials explained that investing in a long-term plan is different from actually developing or buying land.
“We’re not building anything right now,” Councilman Hasit Patel explained. “This is a projected plan for the next 10, 20 years. So it’s not going to happen right now, anyway.”
Flemington’s population has grown significantly since the 2020 Census, which city officials said had been undercounted. At that time, the Census Bureau counted 743 residents; at present, it counts 825, a 9% increase.
A resident who identified herself as Cheyenne ascribed that growth to the Army growing and said businesses should take on more of the tax burden: “If we have essentially a riot of all the people that don’t understand the total implications of this, it’s just going to be a large anger from the people. We aren’t going to have an educational conversation to where people are okay with it or understanding, at least.”
Council member Gail Evans replied, “Well, I certainly would encourage your friends and neighbors living in our community to attend one of these meetings so that they can understand, because, especially how the taxes are calculated, because that’s, that’s a big one.”
How does the calculation work?
A mil, also spelled mill, is 1/1000, while a cent is 1/100. To calculate your millage rate, take 40% of whatever the Liberty County Tax Assessor’s office says the “fair market value” of your house is, then multiply it by .003514. That means if you own a $100,000 house, you are only taxed on $40,000, not the full $100,000.
If you own your house without debt, you could save 1/12 of that amount each month to pay the tax. If you are paying on a mortgage, you could expect your monthly payment to go up by that amount for city taxes, which are usually held in an escrow fund. Check with your mortgage company for details on your specific situation.
Property tax exemptions are an important way to save on tax bills. The State of Georgia offers several tax exemptions to fit different needs. Exemptions work like discounts on the 40% taxable portion of your home.
For example, every homeowner can apply for a $2,000 homestead exemption from county and most school taxes for the house that is their primary residence. (You can’t get an exemption on city school taxes or retiring government debt from bonds.) If your house is valued at $100,000, and you pay taxes on $40,000 of that value, a homestead exemption lowers that taxable portion to $38,000. Contact the Liberty County Tax Assessor’s office between Jan. 1 and April 1 to learn which exemption works best for you.
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