Commissioners welcome members of Robins Air Force Base, give presentation on FY26 budget 

PERRY — The Houston County Board of Commissioners heard from Staff Sergeant Ashli Miles, who is a part of the 472nd Electronic Combat Squadron. 

Miles said she has been in the Air Force for about seven years and is originally from Atlanta. 

“I joined the travel when I got stationed here which is also a blessing because I have family here as well,” she said. 

Miles was first an intelligence analyst by trade. She said that the job required her to collect, analyze and disseminate information to their different customers. She was in this role for six years. 

Miles has just recently joined the 472nd Electronic Combat Squadron as a Squadron List Executive, which she described as a secretary for the squadron commander. 

“I help arrange his schedule as well as create tours or make sure that he’s on schedule for anything he may need,” she said. 

According to Miles, she has done a lot of different things with her time at Robins Air Force Base. Aside from being an intelligence analyst, she also mentioned being an instructor or FTAC. 

“We bring in all the new airmen from their first duty station which is their tech school, and I help teach them about the Air Force as well as Robins Air Force Base and what they can look forward to in their Air Force careers,” she said. 

Miles has had an amazing time here at Robins Air Force Base, as this is her first duty station in the Air Force. She said she plans on continuing in the Air Force, but as a reservist, while staying on base. 

“I’ve been blessed with this opportunity to stay here, be with family and, hopefully, my reach in the community has been felt through the FTAC program through working with Robins Air Force Base as well as the different communities outside of the base as well,” she said. 

Miles then introduced Airmen First Class Andrew Perez. Perez is originally from the Bronx, New York, but relocated to Indianapolis, Indiana, when he was 13. Perez enlisted in the Air Force in December 2023, with Robins being his first duty station as well. 

“By trade, I’m an aviation resource manager. I manage the training program for all our aircrew and make sure that they’re legal to fly, that they’re current so that they’ll be able to deploy and help the mission at any point in time,” he said. 

At Robins, Perez said he helps out and volunteers with programs such as the Ace Council at Robins. He also helps out with the Booster Club at the squadron to boost morale and keep that energy alive. 

Commissioners shared words of appreciation towards Miles and Perez. 

“Thank you both for being here. You’re both young in your careers, but it sounds like you both have a great future ahead of you. We look forward to you growing here in your careers,” Commissioner Gail Robinson said. “When we say everyday in Middle Georgia is Armed Forces Appreciation Day, we genuinely mean it as it sounds like y’all clearly get that understanding in your short time here,” Commissioner Shane Gottwalls said. 

Chairman Dan Perdue gave a presentation on the FY26 budget for Houston County. 

He said the county is requesting a General Fund Revenue of $83,768,500 for FY26, a more than $2 million increase from last year.  

“About 78.4% of that comes through taxes in the primary form of those taxes is property taxes. We get significant income through intergovernmental and charges for services, and in the past few years, our investment income has been rising,” he said. 

Perdue explained the overall priorities of the budget, including public safety and infrastructure, merit increases for current eligible employees, and to slow the growth of the General Fund Reserve. 

In the FY26 budget, no additional personnel positions have been added. 

“When it comes time to set the millage rate in a couple of months, we will re-evaluate position requests that came in and we will see what we deem appropriate to set the millage rate to accommodate any of those position requests,” he said. 

Perdue mentioned that the prior year’s reserve will be used for personnel adjustments due to those merit increases and a new HEMA capital project. 

“Currently [HEMA] is using a building at the annex, so we intend to build a HEMA warehouse there behind the fire department HQ on Lake Joy Road,” he said. 

In terms of the budget philosophy, Perdue added that the General Fund reserve has reached its target while making a gradual transition to not growing the General Fund reserve 

“I don’t want to drop the millage rate too low too quickly. As you all are aware, we’ve made significant reduction in the millage rate the last few years nor do we want expenses to rise too quickly,” he said. 

Another point Perdue made centered around the fact that Houston County delivers a lot of value for the tax dollar. He said they conducted an analysis comparing five larger counties, five smaller counties, and five counties of similar size.

“By far, we have the lowest amount of taxes paid per capita and the lowest amount of expenses per capita with a healthy general reserve and a low sales tax alongside that,” he said. 

The county’s FY26 budget philosophy aligns with current economic realities. 

“We’ve been in an inflationary environment, so we’ve needed to raise wages to hold onto good employees and to hire good employees,” he said. “We’re also coming out of a time in which we’ve had relatively stagnant digest growth after the recession in 2008. We are now having significant digest growth which has allowed us to lower the millage rate.” 

General Fund expenses will total $86,847,253. 

The Board did not take action on the FY26 budget. A decision for approval will be made at the next monthly meeting. 

In new business, the Board approved special exception applications including a nurse staffing agency, a personal training business and a photography business, among others. 

The next Houston County Commissioners meeting will be held on June 17, at the Houston County Annex located at 200 Carl Vinson Parkway in Warner Robins. 

The full agenda of this meeting can be found at www.houstoncountyga.gov/minutes/2025-06-03%20Department%20Head%20Copy%20(002).pdf