Hinesville City Council members are cutting the millage rate, thanks to what it collected through a new sales tax.

The FLOST, or floating local option sales tax, brought in nearly $1.98 million in just five months. That is equivalent to 1.68 mills, and city council members approved reducing the millage rate by that amount at their November 5 meeting.

“It allowed us to roll the millage back,” interim city manager Kim Ryon said.

The city is reducing its millage rate from 9.98 mills to 8.3. Because the proposed millage rate was not the same or lower than the rollback rate of 8.127 mills, the city had to hold three public hearings. Its last public hearing was Thursday, just before the city adopted the rate.

The city has trimmed the millage from 10.5 in 2021 to its current level of 8.3 — and it projects to take in less money in property taxes. Though the digest has grown from nearly $706 million to $1.18 billion over five years, the city projects to take in $9.76 million in property tax revenues, a decrease of nearly $1.9 million, or more than 16%. It is the lowest amount the city has received property tax revenues in three years.

City leaders also are expecting a larger impact from a full year of FLOST collections, especially the five months that could be applied this year didn’t include Christmas or backto-school shopping. “Next year, we will have a full year of collection, and with some busy sales tax months,” Mayor Karl Riles said.