McCall failed to get a second for a motion that would have required taking $6 million from the county’s reserve funding and reducing the millage accordingly. Among those failing to support McCall were Chairman Reg Dexter and Vice Chairman Joel Thrift, both of whom joined McCall as candidates last fall in a campaign pledge to be “sensitive to the citizens and their concerns about increased taxes.”

“… I ran (for Council) by telling people I’d look out for their money … Some say we have excess (funds), and I believe we do …” McCall stated.

After the meeting, he was cordial but unrelenting.

“They did what they thought was best, and I disagree,” McCall said. “We are overtaxing the people. It’s not right.”

In September, McCall was the lone dissenting vote when council approved a levy of 215.3 mills. Although the amount was a reduction of 1.4 mills from the previous year, McCall argued that the reduction was not enough since a 2.3 mill reduction by the county was, in part, offset by .9 of a mill increase for school operations.

Supporters of McCall, most notably County Treasurer Greg Nowell, note that a millage reduction is not synonymous with decreased spending. It was Nowell who called on council in early September to review accumulating cash reserves of $43 million,

In fact, the county’s tax-generated revenues have continued to climb for several years due to reassessment of existing property and new construction.

Since 2006 the value of a county mill (now $481,048) has increased 36.7 percent, and the value of a school mill (now $522,098) has increased 31.5 percent.

Likewise, the 2009 assessed property value used in calculating millage tops $481 million, or an increase of 5.2 percent from 2007’s assessed value of $457.1 million.

County Auditor Ken Nix said the building of multi-million dollar homes, as well as new developments such as Highpointe, located on the shores of Lake Hartwell, are driving values up, generating higher millage values and more tax dollars.

Conversely, Nix said this year’s millage reduction will save the owner of a $100,000 home with a homestead exemption $4.60 in taxes and a non-homestead owner $9.20. The 2009-10 millage will fund Oconee’s $43.3 million operations budget — an amount almost identical to the sum the county has in reserve — and $56.4 million for schools.

Reluctance to reduce

Some council members have been reluctant to decrease taxes, citing unknown costs for jail expansion and renovation and for bringing the courthouse into compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act. The council also recently approved $2.5 million for a firehouse in Westminster.

“We can’t neglect what’s staring in our face,” Councilman Mario Suarez said following McCall’s motion on Tuesday.

There is also the issue of how much cash the county should contribute to economic development and infrastructure improvements. Earlier this year, Finance Director Kendra Brown told council that at least $3.1 million has been set aside and was unspent for economic development and Interstate 85 infrastructure.

In the face of claims by Nowell that Oconee citizens are being overtaxed, other councilmen, newly-elected Paul Corbeil specifically, have maintained that the problem is one of under-spending and not over-collecting. Statistics for fiscal 2007 show Oconee’s total expenditures were $39.7 million, or $7.5 million less than revenues.

“The current council understands this (taxation) concern, and is in the process of providing a response to its constituents,” Corbeil said at a recent council meeting. “Our goal is to clear up any concerns or confusion, and to ensure a high level of confidence in our stewardship of county finances.”

His comments sound strikingly like those of Joel Thrift and Reg Dexter, who joined McCall during the campaign in signing a pledge that, in part, said they would work to “show citizens how their money is being spent.”