From left, Roy A. Perkins, Henry Vaughn and Mike Brooks	
			STARKVILLE – The board of aldermen voted Tuesday night to keep Starkville’s property tax rate the same for next fiscal year, but the city still expects to generate an additional $2.1 million from collections.
With separate 5-2 votes during its Tuesday meeting, the board approved a property tax rate of 34 mills and approved its budget for Fiscal Year 2027, which begins Oct. 1. Vice Mayor Roy A. Perkins, who represents Ward 6, and Ward 7 Alderman Henry Vaughn voted against both measures.
Following the meeting, Perkins told The Dispatch he voted against the mill rate because he believes the budget represents over taxation, adding that he can see ways to trim the budget without risking public safety. He did not specify any of those cuts, however, calling it a moot point.
Vaughn declined to comment to The Dispatch after the meeting.
Both Mayor Lynn Spruill and Ward 2 Alderwoman Sandra Sistrunk, the board’s budget chair, previously told The Dispatch they could not see any way to trim the budget without making cuts to the fire and police departments, both of which are getting increases in the next year’s budget.
With property values expected to rise an estimated 20% next year, primarily from a reassessment from the Mississippi Department of Revenue that raised home and commercial values, the city’s tax rate can remain the same and still generate significantly more revenue.
What that would mean for taxpayers: the owner of a house now valued at $100,000 will see that value rise to about $120,000 and can expect to pay $68 more in city taxes next year with a homestead exemption and $102 more without homestead. That does not count any potential increases coming from Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District or Oktibbeha County taxes.
“Even though I’ve always voted against this, against our tax increases, in this particular case … we’ve gone over this. ” Ward 4 Alderman Mike Brooks said prior to Tuesday night’s vote. “Costs have increased across the board, (and) for us to provide for our citizens as we want to do as they expect from us living in this great city we live in, I am in favor of this budget.”
By leaving the tax rate at 34 mills, the city projects it would raise almost $13.15 million from property taxes, representing a $2.1 million increase from Fiscal Year 2026 collections.
About $1 million of the additional $2.1 million would go toward costs already approved by the aldermen, which includes debt service for road work, an increase in city health insurance costs and changes to the fire department, Sistrunk told The Dispatch. The remainder would go to requests made by department heads and outside organizations, which includes raises for city employees.
During the Aug.19 board of aldermen meeting, Perkins asked the board to lower the millage rate to 28.69, at which rate taxpayers would have seen no increase in their tax bill from the city, but it would have left the city needing to cut at least $1 million from its proposed budget to balance it.
The board met to discuss potential cuts to the budget last week, a meeting which Perkins told The Dispatch he was unable to attend due to scheduling conflicts. The board members who did attend did not identify any major cuts during the meeting.
Other business
In other business, the board:
■ renewed its contract with Pafford Emergency Services for two more years at no cost to the city; and
■ held its first public hearing for a new chronic nuisance property ordinance.
			
						
						
			
      
      
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