Fulton County Schools is moving toward a property tax increase for 2026, proposing a millage rate of 18.080 that the district says would raise taxes by 3.08% over the rollback rate. For a home valued at $425,000, that works out to roughly $91 more a year, with non-homestead properties of the same value facing about $92 in added tax.
The Fulton County Board of Education has tentatively adopted the rate increase, according to Fulton County Schools, which says the tentative 18.080-mill rate marks a 0.541-mill jump from what the rate would otherwise be capped at, 17.539 mills, without the hike. Superintendent Dr. Mike Looney had signaled the move was coming back in August, telling the district he planned to recommend a tentative rate of 18.08, which he described as a 1-mill increase from the current rate, according to a board bulletin posted that month.
As WSB-TV reports, the increase comes after the Board of Education approved a budget requiring a millage rate above the rollback threshold. Under Georgia law, local governments must calculate a rollback millage rate whenever rising property values swell the total digest of taxable property; that rollback figure is meant to show what rate would generate the same total tax revenue collected the previous year, before any reassessments are factored in. Because Fulton's proposed rate exceeds that threshold, state law requires three public hearings before the board can take a final vote.
Why the District Says It Needs More Revenue
District officials point to a mix of financial pressures behind the proposal. The same August bulletin from the district's news office cites rising costs, increased employer contributions for health care and the Teachers Retirement System, inflation, and declining local tax revenue tied to senior property tax exemptions as the forces squeezing the budget. More than 60% of the district's operating budget comes from local property-tax revenue, the district noted in a separate bulletin posted in late July.
Fulton County Schools says the added revenue would help it reduce its reliance on fund reserves. According to Rough Draft Atlanta, the money would also let the district eliminate a previously proposed employee furlough day and would give it some flexibility to consider future salary increases if the rate is approved.
A Tax Digest Still Tangled Up in Delays
Complicating the picture is Fulton County's tax digest, which the district said had not been completed and certified as of its July 30 board meeting. The ongoing delay in finishing and certifying the 2026 digest has continued to create uncertainty in the district's financial planning, according to the district's own bulletin, which noted the holdup has made it harder to fully assess how property-value changes and exemptions will affect projected revenue. The district said it may need to consider short-term financing options if the delay drags on.
That delay traces back to the county's assessment process itself, which has been slowed by technology issues and legal changes, per WSB-TV's earlier reporting on the county's request for an emergency tax-collection order. The Fulton County Board of Tax Assessors is responsible for reviewing assessed property values countywide, and state law requires assessors to adjust those values through reassessment whenever recent sales indicate a property's fair market value has risen. If the county ends up issuing interim tax bills, taxpayers could receive two bills: an interim one followed by a final adjustment once the digest and the final millage rate are locked in, the district has said.
Three Hearings Scheduled Before Any Final Vote
Public hearings on the proposed rate are set to begin Oct. 13 at the North Learning Center, 450 Northridge Parkway in Sandy Springs, with sessions at noon and 6 p.m. that day. A third and final hearing is scheduled for Oct. 22 at 6 p.m. at the South Learning Center, 4025 Flat Shoals Road in Union City. The Board of Education is expected to hold a final vote only after all three hearings have taken place.
Fulton isn't alone in navigating this process this fall. Fayette County's school board has announced plans to hold its maintenance-and-operations rate steady at 19.600 mills, which still counts as a 0.79% increase over that county's 2026 rollback rate of 19.447 mills, according to The Citizen. Fayette's hearings are scheduled for Oct. 5 and Oct. 19, with adoption set for immediately after the final session. As 11Alive has explained, these increases can show up even when a local government's stated millage rate doesn't move, since rising property values alone can push tax revenue higher.
