State & Local government
Bulloch County tax information Tax Commissioner James Deal, an elected official, is responsible for the collection of county (unincorporated areas) property taxes. The tax office, located in the Bulloch County Annex building at 115 N. Main St., also sells vehicle tags and mobile home tags. Bulloch County’s tax rate is one of the lowest in the state of Georgia. Newcomers have 30 days to register their vehicles with the Tag Office. Bulloch County uses a staggered tag renewal schedule. Renewals are due on the vehicle owner’s birthday or within 30 days before that date. The standard tag fee is $20, however specialty tags (vanity, veteran, university, wildlife, etc.) are available for an extra fee. Under a new law, vehicles sold in Georgia since March 1, 2013, no longer will be subject to annual ad valorem tax, or so-called “birthday tax.” But newcomers to the state must pay 50 percent of the newly instituted Title Ad Valorem Tax, or TAVT, within 30 days of moving to Georgia, and the other half within the next 12 months. This applies even if the new Georgia resident paid sales tax in the previous state.The TAVT is 6.5 percent of the estimated value of the vehicle. Ad valorem tax, more commonly known as property tax, is assessed on homes and land and is a large source of revenue for governments in Georgia. The basis for ad valorem taxation is the fair market value of the property, which is established Jan. 1 of each year. The tax is levied on the assessed value of the property which, by law, is established at 40 percent of the fair market value. The amount of tax is determined by the tax rate (mill rate) levied by various entities (one mill is equal to $1 for each $1,000 of assessed value or .001). Property taxes are generally mailed in November and due 60 days later. The current county millage rate is 20.59 mills, which equates to approximately $1,080 in property taxes on a $100,000 home without the homestead exemption. In addition, the county also assesses an additional fire district tax on homes located outside Statesboro’s city limits, but within 5 miles of a fire station. Because the city fire department provides fire protection and services to these home, owners pay slightly higher taxes but receive lower home owner insurance rates. Other taxes currently paid by residents include a sales tax and voter-approved Special Purpose Local Option
Sales Taxes, or SPLOSTs, which are funding capital improvement projects and new school construction. According to the Tax Assessor’s website, the maintenance and operation of Bulloch County public schools uses 46 percent of the tax budget. Fifty one percent of the budget is used for other Bulloch County public services such as the 911 Call Center, Bulloch County EMS Services, rural fire department services, the Bulloch County Sheriff’s Department and Jail, the Correctional Institute and the Bulloch County court system. The Bulloch County Tax Assessor’s Office maintains a searchable website including sales, assessed values, maps and other tax information, at bullochtaxassessors.org.
What services do property taxes support? The Bulloch County 911 Center fields an average of 5,700 calls per month, about half of which need emergency services assistance. For a charge, Bulloch County also answers and dispatches emergency calls for Candler and Evans counties. Bulloch County EMS operates eight ambulances and responds to an average of 500 calls per month, transporting on an average of 445 of those calls. The Bulloch County Fire Department operates 13 volunteer stations, manned by 150 trained volunteer firefighters using 21 engines. The department answers an average of 60 calls per month. The Bulloch County Sheriff’s Office patrols more than 1,200 miles of road, responds to nearly 500 calls per month and provides safety and security for the Bulloch County Court System. The jail has a 400-inmate capacity. The Bulloch County Correctional Institute has the capacity to hold 170 inmates. The institute provides inmates for 47 county work details and provides maintenance for all county vehicles and equipment. The Bulloch County Court System maintains thousands of paper files and records, operates all county civil and criminal court cases and provides marriage licenses, gun permits, birth certificates and more. The Bulloch County Animal Shelter is a last-chance shelter for dogs and cats in need of a home. The shelter is located just off U.S. Highway 301 North, at 81 Mill Creek Road, just outside the Statesboro city limits. New adoptable pets arrive daily.
Bulloch County Guide 2015 • 11