ATLANTA -- The Fulton County Board of Commissioners announces its intention to increase General Fund property taxes it will levy this year by 10.12 percent over the rollback millage rate, and will hold three public hearings on this subject. The proposed General Fund millage rate is 10.281 mills.

Each year the Board of Tax Assessors is required to review the assessed value for property tax purposes of taxable property in the county. When the trend of prices on properties that have recently sold in the county indicate there has been an increase in the fair market value of any specific property, the board of tax assessors is required by law to re-determine the value of such property and adjust the assessment. This is called reassessment.

When the total digest of taxable property is prepared, Georgia law requires that a rollback millage rate must be computed that will produce the same total revenue on the current year's digest that last year's millage rate would have produced had no reassessments occurred.

The Fulton County Board of Commissioners has proposed a 2008 millage rate equal to the 2007 millage rate of 10.28 mills. This rate is higher than the rollback millage rate, therefore, before the Fulton County Board of Commissioners may set a final millage rate, Georgia law requires three public hearings to be held to allow the public an opportunity to express their opinions on the increase. The public is invited to public hearings on this tax increase to be held on Wednesday, June 4, 2008 at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. and on Wednesday, June 18, 2008 at 10 a.m.

Fulton County residents may attend the meetings in person at the Government Center Assembly Hall, 141 Pryor Street, Atlanta, GA 30303 and via video conference from the North Fulton Government Service Center Auditorium, 7741 Roswell Road, Roswell, GA 30350 and the South Fulton Government Service Center Auditorium, 5600 Stonewall Tell Road, College Park, GA 30349.