Officials in Sugar Hill are once again proposing to hold the city's millage rate steady for the fiscal year, a measure that — if approved — would mark 16 consecutive years without a change.
City council members on Monday will consider the adoption of a millage rate of 3.8 mills, following a third and final public hearing.
"We've had limited attendance, with nobody speaking out against it (so far)," said Paul Radford, city manager.
While anything above a revenue-neutral millage rate rollback is considered a tax increase, Radford said the majority of the city's increased revenues in recent years have come from the construction of new homes in the area, more so than increased property tax assessments.
"Our [tax] digest has improved every year, and we're real proud of that," said Radford, adding that patience has paid off for city leaders.
"Our mayor and council kept the millage rate the same, even when the economy was bad, back in 2009 through 2014. Our digest plummeted, like almost all digests did around the state, but we kept our millage rate the same. It wasn't generating as much money, so we had to dip into reserves. We had to figure out how to deliver services."
The final public hearing will be held Monday at 7:30 p.m. at the city council's regularly scheduled voting session.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2018/7/688750/sugar-hill-looks-to-hold-millage-rate-steady-for-16th-consecutive-year