Decatur County will only be able to get a loan to pay for wastewater treatment plant improvements, if it agrees to use a portion of its annual ad valorem tax to fund the loan payments, according to County Administrator Gary Breedlove.
Earlier this year, the Decatur County Board of Commissioners applied for a loan of approximately $3 million from the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA), a government agency that helps county governments secure funding for large capital projects. According to Breedlove, the loan will be for 20 years and have an interest rate of 2.4 percent.
Tuesday, Breedlove was notified that Decatur County will only qualify for the loan if it agrees to earmark a portion of its annual ad valorem property taxes to pay for it.
Breedlove said the loan’s payments will likely require approximately 0.33 mills annually. He said that the amount earmarked for the payments will be specifically defined on citizens’ tax bills, similar to how the County Board of Education and Industrial Development Authority’s millage is listed separately.
Breedlove noted that the 0.33 mill figure is just an estimate, and it may be higher or lower, depending on GEFA’s request.
“The people at GEFA want to make this loan to Decatur County,” Breedlove said. “We have to pass certain criteria with their underwriters, and as of right now we do not meet that criteria. If we guarantee this portion of the millage, that will serve as our collateral, and then we should be able to receive the loan.”
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