The Jones County Board of Education was the first government entity in Jones County to set its 2024 tax rate at a called meeting last week with a result that is good news for taxpayers.
Board Chairman Ginger Bailey called the Aug. 15 meeting to order with all board members in attendance.
School Superintendent Charles Lundy called the meeting to order and took the opportunity to go over some upcoming dates. He said Sept. 5 is a work session that starts at 5 p.m. with presentations about ESSER, federal programs, family engagement and student enrollment.
Lundy said state of the schools presentations and Q&A would take place in two parts, starting at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 17 with four schools and the remaining schools the following Tuesday, Sept. 24.
Board member Alfred Pitts asked for handouts with more information there may not be time to cover in addition to the presentations.
Action items
The adoption of the 2024 millage rate was next on the agenda. The superintendent said the five-year history was advertised in the newspaper last week. He said the board had ticked the tax rate back by a small amount each year since 2021, and the hope is to continue.
“Because of property evaluations, the roll back will be more this year,” he said.
Lundy recommended setting the millage rate at 16.315, which is a reduction of 1.446 mills.
Board member Mike Gordon made the motion to adopt the proposed millage rate, and the vote to approve was unanimous.
Pitts said the rollback would be good news for people in the community.
“It’s also a good sign that we are trying to be good stewards. When we can give some back, we want to do that,” he said.
The superintendent complimented the work of Jones County School System CFO Tonya Merritt.
“She doesn’t like attention, but she does a great job every year. She deserves a lot more credit than she gets,” he said.
The meeting was not all about the tax rate. Lundy gave board members an overview of a renovation plan at Jones County High School. He said the project started with installing an air conditioning unit in the gym, and it grew from there.
The superintendent said he met with representatives of Parrish Construction Group July 31 and came back with more projects.
The work includes improving ceiling structure and ductwork in the gym, new exterior doors and air curtains, bleacher replacement, replacement of lower and upper level gym floors, new seats, retractable divider curtains and a new press box.
He said the base bid had been previously presented, but it makes sense to complete the job.
The total price of the project was $4,448,066 funded with 2019 and 2024 ESPLOST collections.
Board member Kim Washburn made the motion to approve the project, and the motion was unanimously approved.
The next meeting of the board of education is a work session scheduled at 5 p.m. Sept. 5. The next regular board meeting is scheduled at 6 p.m. Sept. 10.
