Final public hearing and then vote on Walton County 2026 Millage Rate Tuesday

08/03/2026 Sharon Swanepoel Government, Government 0

The Walton County Board of Commissioners will have its final of the three required public hearings on a tax increase at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026 at the Historic Courthouse, 111 S. Broad St. Monroe. This will be followed at 6 p.m. by the August BOC meeting at which time commissioners will vote on a resolution to keep the millage rate for 2026 at 12.278 mills, that same as last year.

However, as detailed in a news article on July 23, it has to be advertised as a tax increase since the county is opting not to adopt the rollback rate of 11.702 mills which would be required due to the increase in the tax digest. Not adopting the rollback rate results in a possible 4.92 % increase in taxes for some residents amounting to a possible additional $92.16 in county taxes for a $400,000 home.

Officials say, however, that many Walton County homeowners may not see that increase because the county’s floating homestead exemption freezes the taxable value used to calculate county maintenance and operations taxes once a homeowner qualifies.

The full agenda for Tuesday’s BOC meeting follows. The public is invited to attend both meetings.


PRESENTATIONS

  1. 1.1.Retirement Recognition – Herbert Huff, Jr., Walton Fire Rescue – Donna Bohn, Walton Co. Tax Comm. – Samir Ballouk, Walton EMS
  2. 1.2.Recognition of Accomplishments – Walton Co. 4-H S.A.F.E Shooting Sports Teams 2026
  3. 1.3.American Red Cross Recognition of Walton Fire Rescue – Sound the Alarm Event

2.MEETING OPENING

  1. 2.1.Pledge of Allegiance & Invocation
  2. 2.2.Call to Order
  3. 2.3.Roll Call

3.ADOPTION OF AGENDA

  1. 3.1.Additions/Deletions

4.OLD BUSINESS

  1. 4.1.Repurposing Administration Portion of Old Jail for Department Expansions (Tabled on 6/2 & 7/7)

5.DISCUSSION

  1. 5.1.County Manager’s Report/Update

6.RESOLUTIONS

  1. 6.1.Adoption of 2026 Millage Rates for Walton County
  2. 6.2.Adoption of 2026 Millage Rate for Walton County Board of Education
  3. 6.3.FY27 Budget Amendments – Sheriff’s Office, E911 and Youth Investigations
  4. 6.4.FY27 Budget Amendment and Project Length Budget – SPLOST V – Barrington Manor Resufacing Project

7.PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT 

  1. 7.1.Z26-0158 – Rezone 3.90 acres from R1 to A1 to have personal outside animals – Applicant: Carlos R Barahona/Owners: Anita Panjwani, Arash Punjwani & Cinthia D. Santos Diaz – property located at 2487 Johnson Road – Map/Parcel C0100016 – District 2Planning Commission recommended denial.
  2. 7.2.Z26-0139 – Rezone 3.11 acres from R1 to A1 to have personal outside animals – Applicant: Dinko Cepic/Owners: Dinko & Maryssa Cepic – property located at 3460 Stock Road – Map/Parcel C0720061 – District 5Planning Commission recommended approval as submitted.
  3. 7.3.Z26-0156 – Rezone 7.486 acres from A2 to B2 for a convenience store with fuel pumps and office warehouse/contractor storage buildings – Applicant/Owner: 81 Investment Company, LLC – property located at 5187 Highway 81 & Bay Creek Church Road – Map/Parcel C0390008 – District 1Planning Commission recommended approval with the following conditions:   1) 10’ landscape buffer shall be planted with appropriate evergreen buffer trees per Walton County Tree Ordinance; 2) Frontage of convenience store shall be enhanced with deciduous trees and shrubs; 3)Architectural treatments shall be in keeping with applicant’s submitted renderings; 4) Transportation upgrades as recommended by traffic study shall be installed with GDOT and Walton County Transportation coordination; 5) Outdoor storage shall be prohibited in the storage area.

8.CONTRACTS

  1. 8.1.Agreement – Loganville Christian Academy – Sheriff’s Office
  2. 8.2.Agreement Amendment – MedTrust, LLC – Inmate Per Day Rate Increase
  3. 8.3.Agreement Amendment – Summit Food Services – Pathways Inmate Educational Training Program
  4. 8.4.Contract Change Order – Wilson Construction Management, LLC – Dry Pond Road Culvert Replacement – $73,002.08

9.ADMINISTRATIVE CONSENT AGENDA | All items listed below are voted on by the board in one motion unless otherwise specified by the Board 

  1. 9.1.Approval of July 7, 2026 Meeting Minutes
  2. 9.2.Contracts & Budgeted Purchases of $25,000 or Greater
  3. 9.3.Declaration of Surplus
  4. 9.4.Ratification of Actions take by WCWSA on July 9, 2026
  5. 9.5.Acceptance of Right of Way – Alcovy Overlook Subdivision (50′)
  6. 9.6.Agreement Renewal – Victory Baptist School

10.APPOINTMENTS

  1. 10.1.Walton Industrial Building Authority and Reactivation

11.PUBLIC COMMENT | 3 Minute Limit Per Speaker. To speak at the meeting please follow the instructions outlined at the end of this Agenda. 

12.ANNOUNCEMENTS

13.EXECUTIVE SESSION

14.ADJOURNMENT 

If you are an individual with a disability and require special assistance at this meeting, please contact our office at 770-267-1301 at least 48 hours prior to the meeting and arrangements will be made.People wanting to make a Public Comment before the Board of Commissioners must complete a Public Comment Form and return it to the County Clerk no later than 4:00 PM the day prior to the meeting. You may email, fax, mail or deliver the form. The form may be found on our website at www.waltoncountyga.gov.For more information, please contact Rhonda Hawk.

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