Cobb's Board Approves FY26 Budget and 2025 Millage

Cobb's Board of Commissioners Approves 2025 Millage Rate and FY26 Budget

July 22, 2025 - Following the third and final public hearing, Cobb's Board of Commissioners voted to maintain the General Fund millage rate for 2025 and approved a Fiscal Year 2026 budget that includes a modest increase.

The General Fund millage rate will remain at 8.46 mills-unchanged since 2018. The county's tax digest rose just over three percent, a notable slowdown from last year's 8.5% increase due to a cooling real estate market. The digest increase contributed to a $18 million revenue gain over the previous year.

"I do believe with all we've been considering since November of last year, we're doing the best we can with this budget under these circumstances," Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said. "We're keeping the commitment of this county to do more with less, but there is a bill that will come due. "

Chief Financial Officer Bill Volckmann told the board that, despite the revenue growth, balancing this year's budget remained a challenge due to rising operational costs. Some of the key cost drivers include:

• Increased prices for water purchases, chemicals, parts, electricity, and gas
• Higher personnel costs due to the filling of previously vacant positions, especially in public safety
• Cost-of-living and merit-based pay raises for county employees
• Increases in healthcare, dental, and workers' compensation claims

Volckmann noted that the FY26 budget is the second year in a biennial budget cycle, meaning it includes only limited changes from the previous year. Although departments requested 290 new positions to support Cobb's growing population, only four new roles were added in this year's budget-two in the Water System and two in the Fire Department. None of these positions is funded through the General Fund.

"I don't perceive there is any county committed to doing more with less than Cobb County," Chairwoman Cupid said while addressing complaints about the pay raises for employees. "We also see the pain of that. These are real people here doing the work. In a post-pension environment, where people can pick up and go, we have to approach things differently. We can't expect people to do more with less and expect the same level of service."

The board also approved a slight decrease in the Fire Fund millage rate, resulting in approximately $1 million in savings. Additionally, commissioners voted to eliminate district contingency funds, resulting in an additional $1 million in savings.

During an earlier work session, Volckmann shared that two of the three New York-based financial rating agencies have indicated Cobb County will retain its AAA bond rating for the 28th consecutive year. A determination from the third agency is expected later this summer. Cobb is among a small number of counties nationwide to sustain such a long-standing AAA rating.