THOMASVILLE — The Thomas County Board of Commissioners are proposing to roll back the millage rate for the eighth year in a row.

Commissioners will adopt a final millage rate at their regular meeting on Tuesday, August 24 at 6 p.m. at the Historic Courthouse. The proposed millage rates are 8.633 for the incorporated areas of the county, 6.73 for unincorporated, 1.669 for emergency services, 2.939 for Fire District 1, 2.901 for Fire District 2 and 2.285 for Fire District 3. 

The 2020 millage rates were 8.827 for incorporated, 6.937 for unincorporated, 1.708 for emergency services, 3.02 for Fire District 1, 3.008 for Fire District 2 and 2.325 for Fire District 3.

“Though the reductions are modest, we are moving consistently in the right direction,” said County Manager Mike Stephenson. 

Stephenson pointed to improvements in the county’s financial position, such as health benefit costs remaining constant, county departments controlling routine expenses on a regular basis, higher sales tax revenues from 2020, increased insurance premium tax revenues and privatized ambulance fee collections meeting increased projections for the third straight year.

Also, the impacts from COVID-19 to the county’s overall expenditures and revenues were modest.

“I am confident recent actions taken by the Board of Commissioners will yield similar results in the future,” Stephenson said. “Despite the challenges we faced due to COVID-19, the county’s financial position is sound. Cross-training firefighters and EMTs is stabilizing Emergency Services personnel costs while maintaining service quality and increasing coverage.”

Millage rates for the incorporated and unincorporated areas were 9.35 and 8.119 in 2013.