DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond presented the FY2018 midyear budget amendment to the Board of Commissioners.

The overall operating budget is $1.2 billion. With the support of the Board of Commissioners, the county balanced the budget and projects a FY2018 midyear general fund balance or “rainy day fund” of $89 million. This amount will cover county operations for 1.75 months. CEO Thurmond’s end-of-year goal is to build a “rainy day fund” that will finance two months of county operations.

In 2018, the gross tax digest of all taxable property in DeKalb County grew 10.7 percent or $3 billion, from $28.3 billion in 2017 to $31.3 billion. Despite the growth in property values, the application of EHOST credits will generate lower property taxes for DeKalb homeowners. 

During the next six years, DeKalb County homeowners will receive an estimated $660 million in property tax relief. The tax cut is the result of the passage of two measures in November 2017—the Equalized Homestead Option Sales Tax (EHOST) and the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST).

A final vote on the FY2018 midyear budget amendment by the Board of Commissioners is scheduled for Tuesday, July 10.