Baldwin Adopts Split 2024 Tax Rates After 3–1 Council Vote

Baldwin City Council on Oct. 28 adopted its 2024 property-tax resolution in a 3–1 vote, setting a rate of 9.170 mills for the portion of the city in Habersham County and 4.728 mills for the portion in Banks County, both with local-option sales-tax treatment. The action approved Resolution #2024-10154R, making the rates a completed council decision rather than a proposal.

Millage rates are part of the formula used to calculate local property-tax bills, so the decision reaches property owners throughout Baldwin. Because the city spans two counties, council set distinct rates for its Habersham and Banks portions. The record does not establish how either adopted rate changed the tax bill for any individual owner, but it does establish the rates the city chose for 2024.

The adopted figures emerged from a fall deliberation rather than appearing first at the final vote. At a Sept. 3 work session, council discussed rates of 9.591 mills in Habersham and 5.171 mills in Banks after LOST; Council Member Maarten Venter asked for a no-change alternative for the next meeting. Six days later, staff recommended what the minutes described as a minimum required 0.689-mill increase, producing a 9.170-mill Habersham rate, and the rest of council reached consensus to move forward with scheduling the required hearings. That consensus was not a recorded adoption vote.

Council’s September discussion reflected competing approaches to setting the rate: Venter sought calculations for a no-change option, while staff recommended the 9.170-mill Habersham figure and the other council members reached consensus to begin the hearing process. Residents also had a formal opportunity to comment. Mayor Stephanie Almagno opened the first public hearing Oct. 8 at 6:31 p.m.; according to the meeting minutes, no one came forward and the hearing remained open through the meeting.

The Oct. 28 resolution is adopted, and the earlier September figures and consensus were steps toward that decision, not final action. The first hearing was listed on the Oct. 8 agenda and documented in work-session minutes. The Oct. 28 meeting minutes say all three required public hearings had closed, but only the first hearing’s date is identified here; the record does not show when the final two occurred or provide a property-by-property effect of the rates.

No further council meeting, vote or public hearing tied to the 2024 millage-rate resolution is documented. The central question—what rates Baldwin would use in each county—has been decided. What remains unresolved in the public account is the timing of the second and third hearings and the precise impact of the separate rates on individual property-tax bills.