Public Hearing on Tax Increase Proposal rescheduled, again

According to local government officials, the originally scheduled public hearing for the highly publicized matter regarding an increase in the millage rate has been canceled and rescheduled for a second time due to a “printing error.”

Debra J. Jacobs, County Clerk/CFO conveyed that after the Board of Commissioners received much backlash from rescheduling the first public hearing after a local media-outlet failed to print the correct information, the same error occurred again, causing even more confusion amongst the public.

“The Clayton Tribune messed up my ad again this week by saying the meeting on August 9 was going to be at 10 p.m. instead of a.m. and so now, we have to cancel that meeting and reschedule for August 16,” Jacobs said. “By law we have to advertise at least seven days prior to a public hearing and the ad has to be perfect. This is the second time during this one process! It makes us look [bad]. Everyone thinks we are doing it on purpose. The publisher Wayne Knuckles said to have people give him a call if they had any questions but meanwhile, we still have those few people who think we just keep changing it so they don’t know when to come.”

The rescheduled public hearing regarding the tax increase will now be held on August 16 at 10 a.m. with a special called meeting at 10:30 a.m. to consider for adoption the millage rate for 2018 tax rate.