Franklin proposes to lower millage rate a little

Blessed with an increase in their tax base of close to 14 percent, Franklin County commissioners are proposing to drop the county’s millage slightly.

Following two days of budget workshops, the commissioners have proposed a preliminary millage rate of 5.4546 mills, slightly below the 5.4707 rate for the current budget year.

With one mill set to generate about $3.46 million, this preliminary millage would generate about $18.9 million in ad valorem tax revenues. In the current budget, the millage rate generated $16.63 million, so the county will have about $2.26 million more to spend if they decide not to lower the millage any further.

Had the county gone with the rolled-back rate of 4.9241 mills, which keeps overall ad valorem revenue roughly unchanged, they would have about $17.05 million to spend. The preliminary millage is currently 10.77% over the rolled-back rate, and yields an additional $1.84 million in ad valorem proceeds.

The preliminary budget now totals $112.2 million. Finance Manager Erin Griffith said that changes to the total budget can be attributed in part to the some of the special funds, as the balance in the Health Care Trust Fund will grow by more than $1.5 million; the Weems Memorial Hospital Fund is more than the prior year by $2.2 million; the Tourist Development Fund grew by almost $2.5 million due to the additional 1% levy, and the local option gas tax money road paving fund grew by almost $4 million due to additional grant funded projects. Such grant-funded projects also led to a boost of more than $1 million in the Boating Improvement fund and an additional $2.44 million in the airport fund.

Griffith said that in 2024, homesteaded properties saw an increase in assessed value of 3% based on the Save Our Homes cap increase. This meant a homeowner with a house valued at $150,000 with a $50,000 homestead exemption would have paid $547 in county taxes in 2023, and in the upcoming year would pay $570 in county taxes. 

Griffith noted that the county’s tax base of about $3.462 billion is nearing, but is not yet at, the county’s market high of $4.11 billion in 2006-07. Both now and 16 years ago, the county had 191 budgeted positions, she said.

In her updated report, Griffith outlined the increases in the budget that are now in place.

The sheriff’s office, which consumes roughly half of the ad valorem proceeds, will be about $734,000 more, $526,489 of that in budget increases and about $207,000 of that to be spent on replacing security windows at the jail.

The property appraiser will get about $80,326 more and the tax collector will see about $100,187 more, with Tax Collector Rick Watson, who for many years has kept spending flat, explaining that he now needs to expand staff to keep up with expansion of services.

The clerk of courts will see just $6,552 more, while the supervisor of elections office will get about $50,000 less, due to it being a non-election year as well as rent savings that will accrue when the office relocates to the courthouse annex at the end of the year.

The road department will get $188,670 more, and solid waste $150,088 more, largely due to spending on capital projects such as new equipment.

The budget of parks and recreation will increase by $233,883, with the addition of a new groundskeeper, as well as the county taking on oversight of Apalachicola’s Sylvester Williams Park, which is in need of repair and replacement of deteriorated fending and buildings. Plans are to add a small pickleball court and basketball court, and the county is hoping to get a state grant to cover those.

Overall the county saw its premiums with Capital Health Plan go up by 8.39 percent, which Griffith said is still lower than the national trend, but which will mean, along with insuring new positions, a cost increase to the county of about $176,701.

The county will be bringing in Mary Swoope, an economic development consultant, at an hourly rate not to exceed $20,000 per year.

In terms of pay hikes to employees, the county is now in the fifth and final year of its implementation of a pay plan, and so that will mean a cost of $429,089. The consultant had built in a conservative 1 percent inflation rate, Griffith, and the county has raised that to 4 percent, which will mean about $479,199 in additional costs.

“It is a different workforce,” she said. “It’s definitely a more mobile workforce and we’re having a hard time attracting people.”