Liberty County commissioners have passed a $65.6 million budget for the coming fiscal year — but changes to it could be in the offing.
The budget, which goes into effect July 1, is a 5.1% increase over the spending plan for the current fiscal year. Original budget requests came in at $69.2 million, before the final budget of $65.6 million was presented to commissioners.
While property taxes are expected to make up the bulk of the revenue, about 54%, the property tax digest is not complete yet.
“We are at a slight disadvantage in that we don’t have the digest in to know what our largest revenue source is going to be,” county chief financial officer Samantha Richardson told commissioners. “We have been very cautious as a group to make sure we get a complete picture of our anticipated revenues for the upcoming fiscal year in order to make the best informed decision we can make.”
Property assessments are on their way to property owners, who will have 45 days to appeal their value. Once the appeals are finished, the digest will be close to being finished and submitted to the state.
Richardson anticipated the digest being ready either in late July or in August.
“After that, we will have a chance to review the budget and make any amendments as needed,” she said. “Our goal is to not have to raise the millage rate. We don’t want to raise taxes. We don’t want to raise the millage rate.”
The county’s budget has grown from $34.5 million in fiscal year 2017 to $49.6 million in FY23 and $57.7 million in FY24.
Nearly two dozen supporters of the library were in attendance at the county’s meeting in which commissioners adopted the FY26 budget. Chairman Donald Lovette espoused his support for the library but said the library system’s request for the budget was a major increase over the current budget.
Lovette said the library asked for $352,000 more than it received last year. Health insurance costs and staffing were a major reasons for the budget request increase.
“That was too much to absorb, especially in one year,” he said. “We asked them to go back and tell us what they had to have. They came back with $14,000 in cuts — that’s not a lot, y’all.”
Lovette spelled out the budget process, from department heads making their initial requests and when there are major changes to their budget requests, they are asked to come before county officials to show why it is needed. “We love and support our library,” he said. “I am a card-carrying member.”
Lovette said the commissioners had approved the library’s budget each year until now without question. The library is scheduled to receive $1.42 million in county funding for FY26, an increase of $150,000.
“As commissioners, we are library lovers,” he said. “We kept funding the library because it meant that much to us.”
Library officials said last week they did not they were not getting their full request until late in the week before. A budget request of $1.6 million was submitted February 18 to the commissioners, reflecting a 21.75% increase largely as a result of rising employee health insurance costs, library officials said. Because the library system is under the state Board of Regents, employees who work at least 30 hours a week are required to have the state’s benefits plan offered to them. The library system also is required to participate in the state’s teacher pension plan for all employees working at least 20 hours a week.
The vast percentage of that $190,000 cut from the request was dedicated toward staff pay and benefits, according to library officials. There are nine full-time and two part-time employees at the Hinesville branch, with two open positions the library is holding off on filling. There are three full-time and two parttime employees at the Midway-Riceboro branch, with one position that currently is not being filled.
Lovette said the commissioners are not dictating to the library to reduce hours or close on certain days. Once the digest is finished and presented, he said there may be an opportunity to look at the budget again.
“Once we get the digest, we may be able to review and make some adjustments. We’re certainly willing to do that,” he said. “When that time comes, we will certainly look at any request an organization may have.”