In the past two months the Development Authority of Bulloch County has conveyed “payments in lieu of taxes” totaling more than $2.46 million from three partly property tax-exempted manufacturers to the county Board of Education for operation of the schools and to the county commissioners for fire protection.

When the Development Authority’s CEO Benjy Thompson delivered the check for the Bulloch County Schools’ share of that money, $1,910,200 and 47 cents, during the school board’s March 12 meeting, the six board members present immediately found a use for about half of the total. By their informal agreement, it will be used to extend a $2,000 pay supplement the state is funding for  most teachers and other state formula-funded school personnel so that all of the school district’s regular employees get the full bonus. (That doesn’t include the board members themselves.)

“Today we’d like to take a moment to highlight a benefit created from the work that we do together. …,” Thompson said to the board and public. “These funds represent payments in lieu of taxes, also called PILOT payments,  for the 2025 tax year paid by recently located industrial projects in Bulloch County.”

These are not officially taxes, but payments made “in lieu of taxes” as a result of the way tax advantages have been provided to several major industries as part of incentive packages used to encourage them to locate here.

The Development Authority of Bulloch County itself is exempt from taxes, so when manufacturers locate on its property, their factories become tax-exempt under lease-purchase agreements lasting a period of years. But in recent years, the DABC and county leadership have insisted that incentivized industries pay the equivalent of the property tax for the operation and maintenance of the schools and the protection provided by the county Fire Department.

From 3 Hyundai suppliers

As a result, the school system receives 100% of the revenue it would get if the local property of the recently established industries – AJIN Georgia, SECO Ecoplastic and Hanon Systems – were fully taxed, Thompson said.

Those three industries, whose Bulloch County factories supply automotive components to Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America, which is in Bryan County, were the source of all the funds in the recent PILOT checks.

“In order for us to win large industrial projects in Bulloch County, sometimes the Development Authority offers tax savings … in exchange for commitments of significant job creation and long-term capital investment. …,” Thompson said.

“As an aside, when the Development Authority negotiates these deals, for as long as I’ve had this job, we do not offer tax savings that affect school taxes,” he continued. “They get out of paying other taxes but not school taxes, because we see the support for the school system and board of education to be absolutely critical for the future of this community.”

Together, Ajin Georgia, SECO Ecoplastic and Hanon Systems represent a commitment to create more than 1,200 jobs and eventual capital investment of more than half a billion dollars, he noted.

School employee bonus

It wasn’t long after he presented the giant mockup check for $1.91 million before the board members, during the same meeting, found a specific use for about half of the real money.

Giving his report, Superintendent of Schools Charles Wilson, who had just attended his retirement reception and is set to conclude his service March 31, noted that the Georgia Legislature and Gov. Brian Kemp have approved a $2,000 state-funded bonus for school employees.

Unlike some state raises that have been just for teachers and other educators with teacher-type certification, this one-time bonus is funded for some “classified” or noncertified school employees as well. But the state funding will only cover those funded under the state’s QBE, or Quality Basic Education, funding formula. Like most districts, the Bulloch County Schools employ some teachers beyond the number QBE will fund, as well as many additional support personnel.

“This $2,000 supplement, board members, you know it’s never the case when we receive a supplement from the state that it’s fully funded,” Wilson said.

He added that he did not mean this as a criticism and that he and the board are grateful for the state’s funding a supplement for employees, but that he wanted the facts understood.

“This time they did it based on QBE formula earnings. …,” Wilson said, noting that this would cover most teachers but not all, and some bus drivers or maintenance staff members, but not others. “It’s mostly numbers and not people,” he added.

About $950,000 used

Wilson cited an estimate “just shy of $3.4 million,” for the cost to provide a $2,000 bonus to each of the Bulloch County Schools’ apparently almost 1,700 employees but an expected sum “just a little over $2.4 million” in state funding.

So, providing the full $2,000 supplement to all employees would apparently cost the local district roughly $950,000 more, he said.

Wilson mentioned the idea of dividing the $2.4 million state funding among all employees so as to give them each an equal amount somewhat less than $2,000, but said he wasn’t sure this would even be legal.

Then he noted that the school system’s fiscal year 2026 budget had included a conservative estimate of about $800,000 for the PILOT payments from the industries. Wilson suggested the board could “look for the silver lining” in that these payments had come in “fortunately, ahead of schedule” with the larger check Thompson delivered.

Avoiding ‘confusion’

Board of Education Chair Elizabeth Williams took up the idea from there. First, she dismissed the alternative of dividing up the state funding to give a smaller bonus.

“Now, could you not understand how we would be just roasted by everyone … if we got $2,000 from the state …  and you only gave me $1,200?” Williams said. “Then everyone’s going to say, the Board of Education, they took our money, $800, what are they doing with my money?

“So, we would have saved the money, but instead of having there be some confusion out there, I would rather sacrifice the million dollars and give everybody $2,000,” she concluded.

Another board member said, “I second that,” but it was never put to a formal vote. Instead, Wilson indicated that the staff would proceed with this approach unless the board members objected. None did.

School system Chief Financial Officer Alison Boatright reported that the planned payment is slated for March 27 to go out with the schools’ March 31 payroll.

Fire service PILOT

Thompson had presented a check for $551,019 and 37 cents to the Bulloch County Board of Commissioners during their Feb. 17 meeting. This amount was the payment in lieu of 2025 taxes to the county’s fire service fund made by the same three industries.

For the duration of the incentive period, these industries are exempt from the property tax millage rate set by the commissioners for all of the other functions of the county government. But they are required to make a payment equal to the county fire district millage applied to the value of the factories, in support of the Bulloch County Fire Department.