Laurens County Commission proposes 30 percent tax increase

The Laurens County Commission has proposed an almost 31 percent hike in local property taxes – the county’s first tax increase in more than a decade.

The commission voted Tuesday to advertise the new millage rate of 7 mills, an increase of 1.502 mills from its current rate. The county’s millage rate still would remain the lowest in Middle Georgia.

“Even at 7 mills, we would still have one of the lowest millage rates in Georgia for a county government,” said Commissioner Gerad Mathis. 

“There’s no county within 150 miles at 7 mills,” added County Administrator Bryan Rogers.

The rate increase, along with recent property reassessments that boosted the value of the tax digest, would generate an additional $3 million. Rogers said the additional revenue will allow the county to stop a recent trend of dipping into its cash reserves to avoid raising taxes.

The county has spent almost $3 million in reserves during the past two fiscal years to meet expenditures.

The commission will hold three public hearings on the proposed tax increase later this month.

What it means for homeowners

Had the commissioners kept the millage rate unchanged, taxes still would have gone up due to recent property reassessments that increased the value of the county’s tax digest. To avoid a tax increase altogether, the commission would need to roll back the millage rate to 5.36, from the current rate of 5.49.

If the 7-mill rate is approved, homeowners would see a significant increase on their tax bills.

For a home with a fair market value of $200,000, homeowners would pay about $120 more in taxes, county officials said. For a $300,000 home, taxes would increase by about $180. 

That does not include school taxes, which are levied separately by the Laurens County Board of Education.

Why the increase

In a news release announcing the tax increase – as required by Georgia law – county officials said its recently approved budget required a millage rate greater than the rollback rate “due to the need to increase services in the area of public safety and emergency services.”

“The cost of goods and the cost of doing business – this is, at the end of the day, a business we’re running here – is significantly more,” said Mathis. “I know the fuel bill y’all paid last week was double what it was last year.”

The county commission tries to keep at least six months of operating expenses in reserve, but has had to tap into those funds to cover increased costs – and avoid raising taxes.

The county used almost $1 million in reserve funds for fiscal year 2025 and about $1.7 million in FY26, Rogers said after Tuesday’s meeting.

Laurens County Sheriff Larry Dean asked the board about the impact to taxpayers, saying he expects to face questions from the public.

“I know my budget is a large part of it, with the increase in fuel costs and vehicles,” the sheriff said. “I need to be out in the public defending it.”

What’s next

Before a final millage is set, the commission will hold three public hearings on the proposed increase.

The first will be at 10 a.m. on Sept. 14. The final two will be on Sept. 22 – at noon and then at 6 p.m. The commission then will meet at 6:30 p.m. to vote. All of the meetings will be in the administration building at the courthouse annex.

If approved, the tax increase would be the first by the county commission since 2015, when the millage rate was set at 7.15 mills.