COVINGTON, Ga. — Newton County commissioners have approved a rollback property tax rate for 2023 that represents the third consecutive year it will be lower than the previous year.
The Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday, July 19, to approve a rate of 9.454 mills that will help fund an $82.9 million General Fund budget in 2023 that represents about 6.8% more spending than 2022.
The property tax rate was calculated based on a $4.2 billion tax digest that represents a 22% increase in assessments from $3.47 billion last year. The digest is the total assessed value of all taxable personal and real property in Newton County.
A 9.454-mill tax rate is 15% lower than last year’s rate of 11.145 mills. It is the full rollback property tax rate that state law requires local governments to calculate to produce the same amount of revenue as the previous year using its assessments.
Finance Director Brittany White said the General Fund included an increase in estimated revenues from both the vehicle tag ad valorem tax (TAVT) and the 1% Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) to offset the revenue decrease from approving a lower property tax rate.
In other action at its Tuesday, July 19, regular meeting, the Board approved the Newton County Sheriff’s Office's request to transfer unused funds from the sheriff's 2022 budget to the Capital Improvement part of the county budget to buy 15 2023 Chevrolet Tahoes at a total cost of $664,815 — or $44,321 each.
Sheriff Ezell Brown defended using the money for the purchase rather than placing it in reserves -- saying he needed to replace worn vehicles immediately because of the safety factor involved.
Also Tuesday, the Board:
• Approved an amendment totaling $589,275 to a Construction Management Design-Build contract with Sunbelt Construction for Newton County Probate Courtroom renovation and expansion. The approval brings the overall agreement cost to $625,775. Funding source is Capital Improvements budget.
• Approved Qualite Sports Lighting LLC Construction Services contract for Turner Lake Park Softball Complex athletic lighting retrofit with LED bulbs. Cost is $379,784 with funding from Capital Improvements budget.
• Approved a Professional Services Agreement contract with The Archer Co. to conduct an Employee Classification & Compensation Study, not to exceed $41,000. Funding source is the General Fund.
• Approved a Juvenile Court request for approval of a fiscal year 2023 contract for an attorney for the court's Indigent Defense Program. Cost is $41,250 with funding already in the Juvenile Court budget.
• Approved a fiscal year 2023 contract for an attorney for the Indigent Defense Program for the Juvenile Court's Family Treatment Court program. Cost is $5,500 with funding already in the Juvenile Court budget.
• Approved Information Services' request for approval of a Wireless Modem Agreement Addendum with Genesis Elevator Inc. for a lift gate emergency phone modem replacement for the Public Defender’s building.
• Approved installation of restrooms, pavilion and lighting at Nelson Heights Community Center. Funding will come from proceeds of the 2017 SPLOST.
• Approved a contract for development of the See, Click, Fix citizen relationship management app designed to increase communication between the county government and residents. Cost is $24,950 with funding from General Fund.
• Approved a modification to zoning conditions to remove a condition regarding maximum density to allow construction on outparcels of the Kroger shopping center at 3600 Salem Road.
• Approved revising the Future Land Use Map from AF (Agriculture/Forestry) zoning to A (Agricultural) on 42 acres for David and Tiffany Lynch on McDonald Road to allow future construction of a residence.
• Voted to allow Newton County Sheriff’s Office to apply for the FY22 RSAT Grant to support the RSAT program within the Newton County Detention Center. Funding source is Criminal Justice Coordinating Council.
• Voted to allow Newton County Sheriff’s Office to apply for the FY22 Justice Assistance Grant totaling $26,750 to support day-to-day operations. Allocation amount is .
• Voted to allow Newton County Sheriff’s Office to apply for $50,000 from the COVID-19 Mitigation Project in Confinement Facilities. The funds reimburse facilities for costs associated with COVID-19 mitigation activities.
