The Hall County Board of Commissioners approved the fiscal year 2026 budget at Thursday night’s meeting.
The budget remained unchanged from the first and only public hearing from the June 12 meeting.
The budget was approved at $398.5-million, which was unchanged from FY2025.
“We presented a flat budget to the Board of Commissioners, meaning there was no change in the overall county-wide total from last year’s budget,” Hall County Administrator Zach Propes said. “The Board of Commissioners and Budget Committee worked diligently to optimize and balance the needs and demands of a growing community like Hall County, keeping top of mind our responsibility to serve and prioritize the taxpayers of our community.”
The millage rate is still uncertain due to delays in the final tax digest.
Hall County Financial Services Director Taylor Samples said that he expects them to get the millage rate at a meeting in August.
Hall County prepared the budget using an estimated full rollback of the millage rate. They have rolled back rates in 10 of the last 11 years.
Capital improvements for FY2026 include 30-miles of road resurfacing, improvements to White Sulphur Road and Highway 365, a roundabout at Lights Ferry Road and McEver Road, and a new library in east Hall.
There are also allocations for improvements to the sheriff’s office gun range and Candler Road landfill.
At the meeting, there was also a resolution that over $770,000 would be released from the City of Gainesville’s operating fund due to buildup from what Hall County contributes to the city’s Community Service Center.
There was also a resolution for where the funds from the victim witness program would go.
Hall County imposes a 5% penalty for any criminal offense to go towards this fund, and allocated over $150,000 from the fund to the Solicitor General’s office, and $4,500 each to Gateway Domestic Violence and Children’s Center for Hope and Healing.
“There is a significant amount of work that goes into the budget process,” Hall County Board of Commissioners Chairman David Gibbs said. “It’s long and tedious, but it's also one of the most important things we do to serve the Hall County community. I want to thank the Board, County staff and leadership for their time, efforts and cooperation to ensure we are all acting as responsible stewards of our community.”
http://accesswdun.com/article/2025/6/1292346/hall-county-approves-fy2026-budget