Commissioners Set Millage Rate

During last week’s meeting, the Harris County Commissioners unanimously adopted the new millage rate.

The 2026 millage rate included an increase of 0.71 percent in the county outside the city limits of West Point and 1.39 percent inside the city limits of West Point for those residents inside the county.

The millage rate in Harris County outside the city of West Point will be 9.13 mils, and 5.478 mils for West Point residents inside Harris County.

The millage rate assessed by the Harris County Board of Education is 19.50..

Commission Chair Susan Andrews noted the Harris County Commission has nothing to do with setting the school board’s millage rate.

THE commissioners heard from two people with concerns.

Gina Lee voiced issues with amendments made to the county’s comprehensive plan.

In her comments, Lee said trust between the public and its government “is at one of the lowest points in generations,” adding that people feel, “unheard, unrepresented and increasingly like the government is something that happens to them rather than something they participate in.”

Lee asked how many of the commissioners could pass an exam on the Constitution and noted subjects taught to newly elected commissioners, but those classes do not include any on the Constitution or Georgia Constitution.

“You are trained extensively on the powers of your office but you are not trained on the document that grants you that power and defines its limits,” Lee said and called for the commission to establish a “comprehensive constitutional literacy course for anyone holding public office in Harris County.” She also challenged the commissioners to propose the idea to the state General Assembly.

In her comments, Lee also said that Harris County residents were not opposed to technology but said there is a “profound difference between technology that serves the public and technology that burdens it.”

Lee had comments regarding election processes and called for Harris County commissioners to be non-partisan.

THE proposed re-alignment of Mountain Hill Road surfaced again with Dwight Langston addressing the commission.

Langston provided a description of how Mountain Hill Road intersected with SR 315 when his family moved in the neighborhood 20 years ago and called it a “terrible intersection”. He noted the county modified the intersection to make the county road intersection SR 315 at nearly a 90-degree angle.

“That made it safer, it’s a safe intersection,” Langton said and added that it is currently a “perfect place for a round-about.” He then asked why the county was moving the intersection again, this time “back to where it came from.”

Commission Chair Susan Andrews suggested he ask Mrs. Langston quipping, “She was here (commissioner) at the time the motion was made and the commission voted to do that. We were trying to work with the developers to make that whole area there cohesive and make it work well for them and well for us.”

Langston said that previous discussion “never had anything to do with 315. It was a land swap that probably never did happen.”

Andrews said the Mountain Hill Road realignment project was brought to the commissioners as “something that has already been done” and said she could retrieve the information as to who and why it was being changed.

Commissioner Rob Grant reported that “Woodruff came to us (commissioners) about moving the road. I do not remember it being around the fire station. Woodruff came to us for a land swap. We got the land where the water tower is and they came up with the round-about and the road was going into the round-about.” He added the proposed land swap was because, “they (Woodruff) needed a little bit more extra (land) right there for whatever they were trying to do.”

Langstan pressed to identify who was responsible for the re-alignment of Mountain Hill Road.

Andrews said the matter would be researched with an answer provided.