Politics & Government

Gwinnett Commissioners OK Higher 2013 Millage Rate

The process this year was complicated by the Service Delivery Strategy agreement.

Updated July 17

Gwinnett County commissioners Tuesday (July 16) approved a millage rate for 2013 that is higher than the one currently in effect.

The new rate of 13.75 -- about a 5 percent increase from 13.02 -- is really the sum of several smaller millage rates. That was the effect of the Service Delivery Strategy (SDS) agreement with cities in the county in 2012.

The higher rate affects property owners in the unincorporated areas of the county, which is approximately 75 percent of Gwinnett's population. Residents of cities that operate a police department will see an approximate 9 percent reduction.

The SDS deal mandated that service districts be set up for such things as fire/emergency services, police and development/code enforcement. So each service district had to have its own millage rate.

The effect on a typical $157,000 home in unincorporated Gwinnett will be an increase of about $38 a year, officials said

Commission Chairman Charlotte Nash said that she's "always concerned" about higher property taxes, which affects commercial and residential owners. But she noted that the decline in property values could mitigate the higher tax rate.

The county held three public hearings about the new property tax process, and Finance Director Maria Woods noted that six comments were received from the public.

"Nobody was enthusiastic about the tax increase," Nash said.

People seeking more detailed information about the millage rate(s) and service districts can visit the county website.

-- How do you feel about the higher Gwinnett property tax rate? Tell us in the comments below.



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