Commissioners Also Ratify School Board’s Millage Rate

 RINGGOLD – The Catoosa County Board of Commissioners (BOC) has approved the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 county government General Fund budget and millage rate rollback to 6.287 mills, from a FY 2023 millage rate of 7.348 mills. The BOC has also ratified the Catoosa County Public Schools tax levy of 15.04 mills that was previously set by the Board of Education. The Constitution of the State of Georgia requires county commissioners to ratify school district tax levies.

The FY2024 General Fund budget is $41,215,311, which is an increase of $4.2 million (11.49%) over the prior year budget. Projected revenue increased by $4.2 million through increased retail sales, intergovernmental revenues, charges for services, and investment income.

“This budget demonstrates the hard work our employees do everyday to keep our community safe and thriving with excellent services while maintaining fiscal responsibility,” said Catoosa County Board of Commissioners Chairman Larry C. Black. “We are thankful to be able to support their work and continue to provide competitive career opportunities with this budget despite ongoing inflation pressure. And we are able to do this with a county government millage rate rollback.”

Key takeaways from the FY2024 budget include:

• The Board of Commissioners is allocating $668,152 to the Sheriff’s Office for annual pay increases, which could give every full-time Sheriff’s Office deputy a $5,740 increase and jail officers a $4,062 increase.
• The Board of Commissioners is allocating $98,312 in additional funding to provide annual salary increases to 911 Operators and Supervisors of $4,368.
• The Board of Commissioners has allocated $503,629 for annual pay increases to firefighters, with salaries starting at $49,249.
• The Board of Commissioners is allocating funds to provide all full-time General Government employees with a $3,500 annual salary increase. This increase does not include elected officials or employees who are paid by the State of Georgia and with grants.

Using the 2023 average fair market value of a Catoosa County home of $225,000, the annual Catoosa County Government and Public Schools property tax is calculated with several factors:

• 40% of Assessed Value: $90,000
• County Homestead Exemption: – $2,000
• State Homestead Exemption: -$18,000
• Taxable Value: $70,000
• Net Millage Rate: 21.327 mills (6.287 mills County Government + 15.04 mills Public Schools)
• 2023 County property tax: $1,492.89 (excludes municipal taxes)

The General Fund Budget for FY2024 will be available for public review at the Administrative Offices Building, 800 Lafayette Street, Ringgold, and online at: https://www.catoosa.com/departments/view-all-departments/finance