Johns Creek adopted the 3.434-mill rollback rate Oct. 26, not the 3.492 it advertised, so no city tax increase. Parks bond rate 0.247 mills; county stays at 8.87.
The Johns Creek City Council adopted the rollback rate of 3.434 mills for 2026 on Monday, Oct. 26, so there is no city property tax increase this year. The city had advertised 3.492 mills, the same rate as last year, which Georgia law counts as an increase. The council also set the parks bond rate at 0.247 mills, its rollback rate, instead of the 0.250 staff recommended.
Updated Oct. 27: the council adopted 3.434 mills for operations and 0.247 mills for the parks bond at its Oct. 26 meeting, according to the meeting summary. Read our story on the decision. The background below is how the page read before the vote.
Updated Oct. 17: the first hearing was held Oct. 15, and the city’s presentation explains what the proposed rate means for the budget (below). Fulton County kept its own rate at 8.87 mills on Oct. 7.
The city published its notice of the hearings and the proposed rate on Sept. 23. It says the rate would raise the city’s property taxes by 1.70% over the “rollback” rate.
Why the same rate counts as an increase
Each year the Fulton County Board of Tax Assessors reassesses property when recent sales show values have gone up. Georgia law then requires a rollback rate. That is the rate that would bring in the same revenue as last year, once those reassessments are taken out.
For Johns Creek, the city’s notice gives these figures:
- Proposed rate: 3.492 mills
- Rollback rate: 3.434 mills
- Difference: 0.058 mills, or 1.70% above rollback
- Home with a homestead exemption, worth $625,000: about $14.15 more
- Property without a homestead exemption, worth $625,000: about $14.50 more
A mill is $1 of tax for every $1,000 of taxable value.
The city’s Sept. 22 budget announcement said the $83.2 million budget for fiscal 2027 “is built on the estimated rollback millage rate.” The Sept. 23 tax notice says the adopted budget “requires a millage rate higher than the rollback millage rate.” The two releases did not explain the difference.
The city’s presentation at the Oct. 15 hearing does. It says:
- At 3.492 mills, the city would collect $19,813 more than its adopted budget assumes, after appeals and unpaid taxes.
- At the 3.434-mill rollback rate, it would collect $125,556 less than the budget.
- 3.492 mills is the ceiling. The council cannot adopt a higher rate without advertising it again.
The presentation also says the net digest rose $125 million, or 1.92%. Of that, $111 million came from reassessment and $14 million from growth such as new homes and businesses. Property tax is 28% of the city’s general fund revenue.
Separately, the city recommends keeping its parks bond rate at 0.250 mills, the amount needed to cover the annual payment on the parks bond. The rollback rate for the bond is 0.247 mills.
Five years of the city’s rate
The city also published its current tax digest and five-year history of levy, as state law requires. It shows the net rate falling from 3.986 mills in 2021 and 2022 to 3.646 in 2023 and 2024, then 3.492 in 2025. The council adopted 3.434 for 2026.
Values kept rising while the rate came down. The same table shows:
| 2025 | 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Net taxable digest | $6,506,688,656 | $6,631,820,324 |
| Net taxes levied | $22,721,357 | $23,158,317 |
The city expects to levy $436,960 more than last year, a rise of 1.92%, according to the table.
When and where to speak
All three hearings are in the City Council Chambers at City Hall, 11360 Lakefield Drive:
- 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 15. Held. Mayor John Bradberry and three council members attended, according to the meeting summary.
- 11 a.m. Monday, Oct. 26. Held.
- 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 26. Held. The council adopted 3.434 mills and 0.247 mills.
The city also takes written comments by email at public.comment@johnscreekga.gov. Its budget page has more on the proposed rate.
Fulton County kept its rate at 8.87 mills
Johns Creek is in Fulton County, and the county levies its own property tax on the same bill. The Fulton County Board of Commissioners voted Oct. 7 to keep its general fund rate at 8.87 mills, the fifth straight year without a change, the county said in an Oct. 8 release. The release did not give the vote count.
Because the rate is above the county’s 8.822-mill rollback rate, state law counted it as an increase of 0.54%. The county’s earlier notice put that at about $10.56 more on a $625,000 home.
The county also said:
- Temporary tax bills went out earlier this year with an Oct. 15 due date.
- No additional county bills will be issued, because the rate did not change.
- The county rate has fallen from 10.5 mills in 2015 to 8.87 mills, a 16% drop.
“Now is not the time for a tax increase,” Board of Commissioners Chairman Robb Pitts said in the release.
What it means for you
- No city increase. At the rollback rate, the city’s share of the bill does not rise. The county kept 8.87 mills, which state law counts as an increase of about $10.56 on a $625,000 homestead home. Your own figure depends on your assessed value and exemptions.
- Check your assessment. Fulton County’s reassessment is what drives the rollback rate. Compare home values with our Johns Creek, Duluth, Alpharetta and Peachtree Corners guide, which also compares the four cities’ tax rates.
- Also decided Oct. 26. The same meeting approved a food truck pilot at the Boardwalk.
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