Houston County proposes 11% property tax increase over rollback rate for 2025

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HOUSTON COUNTY, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT-DT) – The Houston County Board of Commissioners announced Friday its intention to increase 2025 property taxes by 11.18% over the rollback millage rate, according to a news release.

Each year, the county’s Board of Tax Assessors reviews property values for tax purposes. When recent sales show prices are increasing, state law requires assessors to adjust those values through a process called reassessment.

After reassessments, Georgia law requires a “rollback” millage rate — the rate that would generate the same total revenue as the prior year — to be calculated. For 2025, that rollback rate is 7.60 mills.

The county’s budget requires a higher rate. Commissioners have proposed reducing the current maintenance and operation rate from 8.501 mills to 8.45 mills. Because that rate is still above the rollback rate, state law requires the change to be advertised as a property tax increase.

Before adopting the final millage rate, the board will hold three public hearings. The first is scheduled for Aug. 19 at 9 a.m. at the Houston County Annex Building, 200 Carl Vinson Parkway in Warner Robins. The second hearing will be held the same day at 6 p.m., also at the annex. The final hearing is set for Aug. 26 at 9 a.m. at the Houston County Courthouse, 201 Perry Parkway in Perry.

The board will vote on the 2025 tax digest after the final hearing.

Chairman Dan Perdue provided additional context regarding the county’s proposed millage rates following the required public notice of rates above rollback.

“Thanks to Houston County’s floating homestead exemption, homeowners with a homestead exemption will pay no more on the county’s base millage rate this year than they paid last year,” Chairman Perdue stated. “In fact, we’re reducing the county’s millage rate from 8.501 mills to 8.45 mills, which means homeowners with the exemption will actually pay less on the county’s maintenance and operations millage rate. This protection comes from House Bill 581, which Georgia voters approved in November 2024 by nearly 63 percent statewide. While many local governments across Georgia chose to opt out, Houston County embraced this new benefit for our residents. The floating homestead exemption caps annual increases in your home’s taxable value to the state’s inflation rate, regardless of how much your property’s market value may rise. For 2025, the law allows no inflationary growth for the first year, meaning your taxable value is frozen at your 2024 base year amount. All current homestead exemption holders automatically receive this protection without needing to reapply.

Perdue added this comment about public safety investment:

“The proposed 8.45 mill rate will enable Houston County to strengthen the public safety services that keep our families safe. “This rate allows us to add six new Sheriff’s deputies to better serve the people of Houston County,” Perdue explained. “We’re not just maintaining our long legacy of excellent public safety—we’re building on it to ensure we have the resources needed to protect our growing community.”

Perdue added that this will be “game-changing” fire protection for unincorporated areas:

“Houston County is also proposing to increase the fire millage rate—charged only to unincorporated residences—from 1.177 to 1.677 mills. “We held town halls in May and heard directly from residents about the need for faster response times from our fire service,” Perdue noted. “This increase will fund nine new firefighters, allowing us to bring our remaining fire stations to 24/7/365 coverage. This enhancement means even faster response times to fires, car crashes, and medical emergencies across the large area we serve. It’s a milestone moment for the Houston County Fire Department and a game-changer that will dramatically improve emergency protection for our residents.”

According to Perdue, for a home valued at $350,000 in unincorporated Houston County, this fire service enhancement represents approximately $70 more in annual taxes—less than $6 per month for round-the-clock emergency protection.

“Houston County remains the undisputed leader in delivering exceptional value to citizens for their tax dollars,” Chairman Perdue concluded. “We operate efficiently and effectively, and this millage rate will allow us to continue expanding the high-quality services our residents deserve. When emergencies happen, seconds matter—and we’re making sure Houston County is ready.”