LEESBURG, Ga. (WALB) — Lee County leaders made plans for property tax repayments for homeowners in a special-called meeting on Thursday, May 28.

The board approved and adopted corrected PT-32 forms in Thursday’s meeting that would lower millage rates to match the rollback rate in Lee County, leaders said.

Watch the full meeting here.

Philip Hussain, the board director, explained Thursday’s approval would allow refunds for residents, though the resolution will not be signed until the county’s next regular meeting.

Hussain said he sent four corrected PT-32 forms on April 23 to the cities of Smithville and Leesburg, as well as Lee County and the Lee County School Board.

The Leesburg city manager, Bob Alexander, said they also lowered their rate but have not announced any repayment plans.

The tax commissioner, Wendy David, said the county will issue paper checks starting in June.

Many residents attended Thursday’s meeting in hopes of a resolution after weeks of confusion from ‘misinformation.’

“The question on every homeowner’s mind is, ‘Where does that leave us?’” one resident asked the board. “Many of us have mortgages; we carry escrows in the mortgages. Many of us have had a two to 400 dollar increase in our mortgages just due to taxes in escrow, based on the property value reassessment.”

Another resident in attendance said the Lee County School System was incorrectly put in the spotlight, since it was not responsible for the original error.

“As a person that lives in this community, something that’s valuable to our community is our school system,” the resident said. “I think if blame is put where it shouldn’t be, we should all pause for a minute and remember how we got here. Let’s get it corrected and stick together.”

Lee County School Board Responds

WALB obtained a letter, Thursday morning, prepared by attorney Cory Kirby, on behalf of the Lee County School Board, ahead of the meeting.

In the letter, Kirby wrote that the school system estimates it collected about $3.4 million in property tax overpayments after what the BOE calls an “error” by the Lee County Board of Tax Assessors.

Kirby’s letter said the school system relied on the incorrect tax digest provided to them to set its rollback rate and budget.

That rate was then used “for billing and collections from Lee County property owners.”

>> READ MORE: Legal expert breaks down reported Lee County property tax overpayments, recent ESPLOST vote <<

The letter states the BOE was “informally notified” on April 23, 2026, by the chairman of the Board of Tax Assessors that a third party had been consulted to re-evaluate the tax digest.

“The Lee County Board of Education was [then] provided with an unofficial ‘proposed’ tax document that provided a ‘new’ rollback rate.”

Using the newly proposed digest information, the letter said “the difference in revenue appears to be approximately 3.4 million dollars less” than what the school system collected under the previously approved rate.

Some Lee County residents said they believed the total could be more than $5 million.

In a May 27 letter, Kirby also emphasized that the school system has not received “any certified revised or corrected tax digest or PT32.1 tax form,” and said there has been no “proof” that the proposed rollback rate was approved in a public meeting.

The BOE’s legal team reportedly asked the county for certified documents tied to the revised digest.

“Upon a formal determination by the appropriate legal body that an error was made and official action taken, the LCSS will act accordingly and in collaboration with the Tax Commissioner to make any legal appropriate corrective action that may be necessary.”

The letter said the school system wants the Board of Tax Assessors to take an official vote on the newly proposed digest, writing that “this will allow the School System to have official and legally acceptable information to rely upon in forming any potential corrective action.”

“The Board of Education will always act with the best interest of the students as the priority.”

The Lee County School System released an official statement after Thursday’s meeting, around 5:15 p.m.

Read it in full below:

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