Forsyth County has announced potential property tax rates for 2018, and while rates are not expected to go up, the county will see more money in increased taxes for some residents.

Commissioners announced in a news release this week the 2018 millage rate will remain the same at a total millage rate of 8.036 mills, but the county will see a 7.6 percent increase in the tax digest due to a recent value of reassessments and new construction. Taxes levied this year will see an increase of 3.85 percent over the rollback millage rate.

When the total digest of taxable property is prepared, Georgia law requires a rollback millage rate be computed that would produce the same total revenue on the current year’s digest that last year’s millage rate would have produced had no reassessments or growth occurred.

The total millage rate is made up of: the maintenance and operations rate, which will stay at 4.642 mills; the fire rate, which will remain 1.975 mills; and the bond rate, which will remain 1.419 mills. 

The millage rate is the formula that calculates property taxes. One mill equals $1 for every $1,000 in assessed property value, which is 40 percent of the actual market value.

The millage rate will fund the county’s 2018 general operating budget, which is being prepared.

For the tax digest increase, about 3.67 percent came from new construction and 3.99 percent from increased values from reassessments.

Any changes to an individual tax bill will come from the value of their reassessment.

Three required public hearings for the millage rate will be held on Thursday, July 6 at 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. and Thursday, July 20 at 6 p.m. The afternoon meetings will be part of the commission’s regular meetings. 

All public hearings will be held at the Forsyth County administration building located at 110 E. Main Street.

Recently, Forsyth County Schools announced it would not increase its millage rate from 17.3 mills. The school rate, county rate and a state rate will make up the total millage rate for Forsyth County tax payers. 

Public hearings will be held for the school millage rate, which is also retaining an unchanged rate over a rollback rate due to an increased tax digest and reassessments, on July 6 at 6 p.m. and July 18 at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. All hearings will be held at the Forsyth County Board of Education at 1120 Dahlonega Highway.

County and school officials have said both rates are among the lowest in metro-Atlanta.