Opinion
Last month the County Council passed the millage rate for the current tax year. We did not increase the amount you pay in County Government taxes.
That’s the first bit of good news.
The second part of the good news is that our County is growing, which helps keep taxes under control.
As we discussed in our County Council meeting, the value of a mill increased in Edgefield County from $71,834 to $72,957. That’s the highest value Edgefield County has ever had in the value of a mill. If your County is growing, this number goes up. This growth allowed the County to keep the millage rate at the same level as last year, which means that you pay the exact same taxes or perhaps less (because of other factors) this year as you did last year.
To ensure we are all clear on what a “mill” is: In essence, a mill reflects the value of the property being taxed. So, the County generates more revenue because more new businesses or new homes are being added in our County.
One of the reasons the economic environment is improving is because of local business expansions, both in small business and industrial.
The benefit of an increasing value of a mill is that it provides a larger tax base for the County, which allows the County to generate the revenues needed to operate without having to increase the tax burden on property owners.
This increased value of a mill, while small, is good news.
Also, the Local Option Sales Tax, which has been in place in our County for years, had an increase of about $100,000, thanks to increased sales tax collections. That money goes directly to reduce property tax bills. That means that the taxes on a $100,000 home in Edgefield County should decrease about $7.
It all adds up to good news for our County and for you. Now, you can see why we keep saying growth is coming. It’s slow and steady. However, we are continuing to work, plan and invest our time in areas that will give us good jobs and bring benefits for Edgefield County citizens.
County Staff, our economic development partners, and County Council have been working hard to create a welcoming environment, putting policies and ordinances in place to bring about needed changes, and always looking to the future.
You deserve no less.
Until next time,
Dean Campbell
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The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Edgefield Advertiser.
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