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BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The Baton Rouge Metro Council will consider approving a proposed tax increase for the Library System at its April 8 meeting.
The Advocate reports (http://bit.ly/1NBlPMf ) parish voters will make the final decision, but the council will decide what millage rate will appear on the ballot.
Earlier this month, the Library Board of Control voted to seek an increase in their dedicated property tax to 11.1 mills. The current millage is 10.78 mills.
The move came as a shock to many council members, some of whom were pressuring the board to seek a lower millage. Even the Library's own director Spencer Watts recommended a small decrease to 10.7 mills.
Several council members have already stated that they will reject the increase. The Metro Council has the power to send a different millage to voters for approve, if they see fit.
The tax proposal is expected to go before parish voters on May 27.
Baton Rouge residents with $150,000 homes that are subject to homestead exemption pay $80.85 a year for library taxes, while those with $200,000 homes pay $134.75 a year for the library, according to the Assessor's Office. If the tax increase goes through, bills will rise to $83.25 for owners of $150,000 homes and $138.75 for owners of $200,000 homes.
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Information from: The Advocate, http://theadvocate.com
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