The Augusta Commission is expected to OK property tax rates and again take up fixes to address Mayor Garnett Johnson’s use of his personal credit card for office expenses.
During its Tuesday regular meeting, the full commission is scheduled to vote to adopt the millage “rollback rates” as applied to all city funds.
The rates are levied against each $1,000 of a property’s taxable value in tax bills due Nov. 15. If a property’s assessed value is unchanged, owners will see no increase in the city portion of their tax bills, Finance Director Donna Williams said.
While Augusta will not have to advertise a tax increase under state law, reassessments that befell most homeowners mean most will experience an increase in the amount of city taxes they owe.
“It is a tax increase because most people’s property values have increased,” Commissioner Sean Frantom said.
The proposed rates, called the millage and measured in mills, amount to the following after Augusta’s 1% local option sales tax credit is applied to each tax fund.
- Countywide 6.468
- Urban Services District 3.535
- Capital Outlay .516
- Fire Protection 1.651
- Blythe Fire 2.403
The larger bill in the room, which local taxpayers often mistake for city taxes, is taxes levied by the Richmond County Board of Education. A $200,000 owner-occupied house in Augusta will see an increase in school taxes of more than $167, while property owners over age 65 are exempt from all school taxes.
Mayor credit card matter still unresolved
The commission is expected to weigh in on a motion to require Mayor Garnett Johnson to begin using a city-issued credit card rather than his own personal cards to make purchases related to serving as mayor.
The city reimbursed Johnson for a first batch of receipts last year totaling around $41,000. City officials warned him at the time and again this year that the procedure was outside of existing city policy and fails to guard against errors, procurement violations or returns.
Commissioner Wayne Guilfoyle, who pushed to repay approximately $40,000 in corrected 2024 expenses submitted by Johnson this year, said at the Aug. 21 meeting the open-ended issue makes Augusta look bad.
Early last month, Guilfoyle pressed for taxpayers to cover the bill, but to require Johnson to use a city-issued card rather than his own.
MORE: Mayor’s credit card, tax rate go for Augusta Commission approval
Last week, a motion suggested by Commissioner Jordan Johnson was to issue the mayor a city credit card with the same limit that applies to the handful of city employees and elected officials who are issued city credit cards.
In the meantime, the administrator, directors of Finance and Procurement, a Law Department representative and potentially someone from the mayor’s office are expected to meet to find a way to resolve the matter.
The reimbursement and setting policy for the mayor’s card is Item 7 on the commission’s Tuesday consent agenda. The meeting starts at 2 p.m. at 535 Telfair St. The millage item is No. 14 on the regular Tuesday agenda.
