Bulloch County Commissioners held their second of three public hearings on the proposed property tax increase on Monday, August 14, 2023, at 6:30pm in the Commission meeting room at the Bulloch County North Main Annex. The purpose of the public hearing is to allow for citizens to voice their opinions or concerns for the tax increase.
This tentative increase will result in a millage rate of 12.850, an increase of 2.814 mills. Without this tentative tax increase, the millage rate will be no more than 10.036 mills. The proposed tax increase for a home with a fair market value of $225,000 is approximately $251.01, and the proposed tax increase for a non-homestead property with a fair market value of $200,000 is approximately $225.12.
Chairman Roy Thompson opened the meeting and reported that the first hearing drew about 140 attendees, with this one bringing only slightly fewer than that. He announced that he had invited several representatives from the County to make presentations to the group to help citizens better understand what their departments have asked the Commission for.
Vice Chairman Ray Mosley led the opening prayer and pledge.
Chairman Thompson noted the later start time of 6:30pm to allow more citizens to attend and thanked the attendees for coming. He also requested decorum during the hearing and reminded the attendees that it would not be a public question and answer session. He offered that he and the other commissioners would remain after the meeting for additional public discussion.
Chairman Thompson asked that all invited County department representatives come to the front for their presentations to the public.
Comments from County Presenters
- Sheriff Noel Brown
Sheriff Brown said he asked the County for what he needed to protect the citizens of this County, not what he wanted. His office is open 24/7, and he invites citizens to speak with him personally about anything in the budget he submitted. "We're at a time right now in this County that we've got to do something about it," he said. "People in the past have done more with less, and now we have to catch up." He suggested that anyone unhappy with the public officials in the room should put their name on the ballot. He is very passionate about us doing better here. "Folks, I've got to pay this, too," he said. "We're just about where we need to be. I need some more employees, and I'm going to get them." He reiterated that citizens are welcome to come by or call and talk to him about what he has requested at any time. His number is 912-531-2952.
- Public Safety Director Ted Wynn
Wynn started out by saying he’s glad Brown is his sheriff, soliciting applause from the audience. He commended the attendees for being good citizens and showing up to the hearing. He first commented on inflation, with 2022 having an “especially rough” inflation rate of 8%. This inflation has been tough on the big ticket public safety purchases like ambulances. “We should not be serving you with a fleet that is aging at that rate,” he said of the 20-year-old engines. He said in 1975, they paid about $22,000 for ambulances. Now they are between $250,000-300,000 per unit. The current ambulances are running on hundreds of thousands of miles. This requires a lot of maintenance, and they need to be replaced. Inflation also affects every line item in the budget for Public Safety to serve Bulloch County. This includes raises for public safety employees. “Our public safety employees worked tirelessly through the pandemic,” he said. “And they never missed a call. And we didn’t work from home.” To keep them here, we must pay a competitive wage.
- Assistant EMS Director Brian Hendrix
County EMS is asking for funding to get trucks out to Portal and Register to fully staff the county. They have visited 12 different hospitals with transports in the last year, with more than 6,700 transports. They expect to run more than 12,000 calls this year, and they need to decrease their response time in certain areas of the county. Sometimes it takes 10 minutes to get to an emergency. They currently have 28 full-time personnel on shift and 20 who are part-time. They are looking to have 12 full-time employees for Portal and Register, and they want to increase coverage in the South end of the County due to the expansion and impact of Hyundai. “We have to start somewhere,” he said. “And our goal is to get to every citizen in a timely manner.” Bulloch County is 689 square miles, and it can be hard to get everywhere. But they are going to do the best they can for this County.
- Fire Chief Ben Tapley
“We have some of the best and most dedicated firefighters,” he said. As of the end of FY 2023, they have six career firefighters on duty every day, but their time is limited. That’s two people in Portal, two people in Brooklet, and two people in Register, so people in those areas can have someone there in a few minutes. They also work lift assists, as the Sheriff’s Department and EMS are overextended. They travel all over the county to help those who have fallen get up and give them an assessment. “We are the only fire department in Bulloch County that performs that service for the community,” he said. For FY 2024, he said the BCFD budget is a need, not a want. They need to build their coverage area in this huge county and decrease response times as well. They also would like to increase their fire engines to three personnel. This also improves Bulloch County’s ISO rating, which reduces insurance premiums.
- Public Works Director Dink Butler
The public works umbrella includes the airport, the fleet management shop, transportation maintenance, and solid waste. “We are in need across the county, period,” he said. “Not all departments are reaching for the moon. I live in the county, and I pay taxes just like the rest of you. We need those firefighting services, we need those medical services, and we need that law enforcement.” The airport is self-sustaining, and the solid waste department budget has actually decreased by over $230,000 in the last year. Transportation did have an increase in budget this year due to maintenance, equipment, and fuel cost increases. One of the reasons for an increase for the fleet management department was to add an additional mechanic. This allows them to save money in the long run by keeping maintenance in-house. With all of the cost increases in materials and fuel, they actually had a very minimal requested budget increase for FY 2024.
Following the presentations, Commissioner Curt Deal commended all of the presenters for their tireless efforts during last week’s storms. He said it’s just one example of all they do to keep our county safe. Chairman Thompson noted that the crowd listened intently to the presentations and that the Commission greatly appreciated the presenters’ attendance and words.
Public Comments
Eighteen people were signed up to speak, and each was allotted 5 minutes. The Commission moved to open the floor for public comment.
These comments are paraphrased for your convenience. Please view the livestream for full comments.
- Cassandra Mikell - The Commission does not want to hear from the public. We deserve to be heard. You are asking people to give up money they have worked hard for. We come before you because we are taxed enough already. You eight people are our last barrier to prevent this increase from happening. Do not increase the millage rate; split the difference with the taxpayers. Do the right thing and go with the original estimates that were sent in May. This is morally correct.
- Susan Hadley - Lives in Brooklet. The men that you had up here talking, I’m sure they are very respectable and do their job very well. But I can only see what goes on around my house and my property. And my road, Willow Lane, is poorly maintained. I was without power for 20 hours after the last storm. I pay the highest taxes on Willow Lane. My taxes have done nothing but go up every year since I moved to Bulloch County. I don’t have kids and don’t understand why I pay anything for schools. The taxes have to quit going up, or I’m going to get taxed right out of Bulloch County. [Chairman Thompson pointed out that the Commission has nothing to do with school taxes.]
- David Bennett - After 20 years in military service, my wife and I chose to move to Bulloch County. I was a student at Georgia Southern, and we fell in love with Bulloch County. I want to say thank you to the Board. This is the first time I have ever spoken to an elected body. I do not support any property tax millage increases. Many of the Board are business owners. What would you do if an employee asked for a 30% pay raise? You would say no. The Commissioners are now asking their employer, the taxpayers, for that. The proposed increase is too much of a financial burden in the current economic state. You want solutions. Here are my suggestions. Allocate the $1.5 million budget for land acquisition for public services instead. Place a county-wide freeze on certain travel. Consider privatizing medical response. Close county offices one day a week, and have employees work 4-10s. Decrease the county recreation budget. Some of you are up for re-election next year. If you vote for this tax increase, I’ll be running against you.
- Scott Webb - I want to follow up with what Sheriff Brown said last week. He said there was a time in this county when nothing was done for a long time. But this did not happen overnight; it happened over many years. Some trust has been given already, as these commissioners were elected, but we trust that you will hear us and act on it. We have one shot at this, and the commissioners must strike now. Change can start here and now. We have been awakened. We need to make our friends and neighbors aware so they can be involved. We must offer suggestions and demand answers. We need new industries to donate vehicles and equipment. We need to see a picture of that on Grice Connect. Trust is earned, not given.
- Lucia Hurst - It appears that I ruffled a few feathers last week. Based on the information I gathered, I realized that our county has made some sweetheart deals with Korean and German factories. These factories are all supporting the Hyundai plant, and we welcomed them with tax abatements without allowing citizens their rightful vote. These factories will cut our timber down and pollute our area. Word on the street is that most will have foreign management. These companies should not have been given tax breaks without a public vote. Who should be benefiting if it’s not the citizens? Why are these companies not paying their fair share? If you truly represent the people, you will vote 'absolutely not' next week. If you don’t, I will personally do my best to vote you out.
David Bennett addresses the Commission - Tim Powell - I wouldn’t mind paying a little more in taxes if I felt I was getting a decent return on my investment. Road maintenance is horrible in this county. It’s getting worse, and I’m not just talking about dirt roads. There are hazards all over the county. Our railroad crossings are a disaster. I would call on the commission to rescind the vote to pave almost a million dollars worth of a private county road behind the Sheriff’s office with TSPLOST funds. It’s a waste of money for convenience, especially this year. Tax abatement is poison.
- Bill Emley - I am here as a Bulloch County senior citizen property owner. You’ve opened up Pandora’s Box with this budget. How are we funding this budget when you are aware that the senior citizen property owners in your county are already in the deficit? If you pass this budget, you’re going to shove your senior citizens more than 60% in debt. How can you give a candy bar to one of your children and deprive your other children? Were impact fees placed on the new industries?
- Romaine Bradford - I was asked by Chairman Thompson if I was for growth. My response was yes, but as long as it’s controlled without more burden on our property owners. You are going back to the old cash cow, the property owners, again. This all comes out of our pockets. The new industries have never paid a penny of property taxes in Bulloch County. All local taxes should come through the Board of Commissioners. Does Hyundai have a Plan B if the EV market goes bust? I own Brooklet Crossing. Personally, this is not a good thing for me, because the growth would help me, but it’s the right thing to do. With gas prices and food prices, people are just trying to live. Property owners should come together and fight this, because enough is enough.
- Renee Perkins - I live out in the country. I’ve been to several meetings, and you know all the things that need to be changed. Our pastor Sunday said that Jesus changes everything. How would Jesus think? What would Jesus do? I just got back from the Dominican Republic. Everyone there would say we are millionaires. We should be ashamed of how we live and what we ask for. You have so much, and you’re asking for so much. We can do with less. Think about the less fortunate.
- Dr. Paul Whitlock - I moved to Statesboro in 1975, and I’m very proud of what citizens of Bulloch County and the government have done for us since that time. We have a very large cash society in Bulloch County that’s using our resources, and that will continue to grow. I feel certain that some of the 11 million individuals who have come across our southern border are going to be coming to us. We also have a lot of people who are not paying any taxes at all. I don’t think that you can continue to have the backbone of our budget be the property taxes. Move more toward a consumption, retail type tax. I appreciate you serving the county, and I know it’s a thankless job at times.
- Lannie Lanier - I agree with everything that’s been said. Dr. Whitlock is very much on target. I’d like to address agriculture. I don’t think you’ve paid any attention at all to agriculture in this tax. Every dollar of tax will be passed on to a farmer when they pay rent. If cotton prices fall, they’re in a jam. It’s a vicious cycle. What services from this tax increase will benefit agriculture? I’m not seeing any. Other counties do not tax people 65 and over on school taxes. That would help a lot of people if we could do that. It’s nonsense to have these big industries who can afford to pay but to make up the difference with sales tax.
- Carolyn Akins - Did not speak.
- Kay Anderson - Did not speak.
- Melissa Dixon - I have agreed with everything we’ve done in the last 26 years. But you are seeing my face for the first time tonight, which means I do not agree. I speak for all the residents who do not want these property tax increases. I have never stood up and complained. Every day it seems like something is going up. Families cannot afford the way things are now, and you want to make it even harder on us. We worked hard to become homeowners, and now our dreams are in jeopardy. You should be looking out for us, not the corporations. Do the hard work and help us out. Have you had discussion with other counties who keep rolling their taxes back? The people need a break, and it needs to come from their elected officials. This area is one of the lowest paying areas.
- Zachary Classens - Did not speak.
- Joan Price Adain - I spoke last week but have some other concerns. I’m here to ask for solutions from you. Several have suggested that you alter the fiscal year, and others have good ideas about how to fund our necessary services. What are the longterm plans to find solutions that will not burden the property taxpayers even further? Bryan County is approaching their tax situation a little differently and has been able to roll back their taxes for the 7th straight year. They’re in the same boat with a smaller population, but apparently they’ve figured out something. You have to understand the pressures and the strains the citizens are facing because of your decisions. We question if we’re really being heard. We rely on you.
- Dr. Tom Williams III - I was born in Statesboro and am a resident of Brooklet. Despite my title, I spent most of my life in government housing and homeless shelters. 1 in 4 people in Statesboro live in poverty. The airport budget includes rehabilitation for a secondary runway. The primary runway is in excellent condition. We don’t need a secondary rejuvenation project right now. Is this Commission looking for grant money to assist with growth and funding public safety? These services are essential. We need to think strategically, because the landscape is changing. Splash hasn’t generated a significant profit in a decade, but we keep taking out loans to improve it. But public safety can’t get the resources they need, even during a global pandemic. We put money into parks and rec before our own citizens, and that’s not right.
- Lawton Sack - I got involved in Bulloch County government 20 years ago. I ran for County Commissioner, and I didn’t win but I have stayed involved. I saw there was a homeless problem, so I helped build the mission. And we built it debt-free. I don’t own property in this county, but I saw the need for the senior citizen population. I’ve done what was asked of me, and I’ve put in my time. I’m fighting for the senior citizens and the disabled because they can’t be here. This isn’t for myself. It’s for the citizens of this county. I hear from them every day. We don’t want these taxes here. I know you’re tired of hearing that, but I went to Sheriff Brown, Mr. Wynn, and Mr. Couch and said let’s come up with a solution together. We want you to fight for us and vote no to this. We can find other solutions, because that’s what Bulloch County does. We can come together, and we can make a difference here. But don’t do it by our taxes.
Chairman Thompson motioned to close the floor to public comment. He advised that Commissioners who were able would stay after to speak with the public. County Manager Tom Couch offered to stay to answer public questions, as well.
The meeting was adjourned just prior to 8:30pm.
The next and final hearing is scheduled for Monday, August 21 at 6:30pm at the Bulloch County North Main Annex.
You can view the livestream of the meeting below. Full agenda and attachments are available here.