No increase in millage rate, but tax collections will go up for City of Cedartown this year

The good news for Cedartown residents? Property taxes are technically going down.

The bad news? The slightly millage rate won’t impact the amount of collections the city receives overall, so even with the decrease the money coming in is going up.

City Commissioners will vote in the coming days on a slight reduction for the 2024 millage rate for the City of Cedartown: a reduction of .25 mills this year from 10.934 to 10.684 mills is being recommended for property taxes this year.

Even with the reduction, City Manager Edward Guzman reported that the city will actually increase their revenue available from taxes collected this year. Which means the city is required to hold three different public hearings to allow for comment from residents on the issue.

A first hearing was held at 10 a.m. this morning with no participants showing up in the Commission Meeting Room at City Hall. Another is scheduled for this afternoon at 4 p.m.

The third and final hearing will be held on August 29 at 6 p.m.

Earlier this week, the county voted 4-1 to approve the Board of Education’s millage rate increase for the year. They settled at an even 14 mills, required by state law if the Polk School District wants to receive equalization funding totaling more than $7 million from the Department of Education because the county falls into a rural district category.

The Board of Education approved lower millage rates over the past two years.

The County Commission voted earlier this summer to lower the millage rate below last year’s level after property assessments shot up the value of homes across the county, leaving residents scrambling to figure out how to cover the extra cost.