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Albany commissioners have made a decision that's going to hit property owners in their wallets.

In spite of public outcry, the Albany Board of Commissioners has voted to raise Albany’s millage rate from 8.66 to 9.99.

Commissioners Roger Marietta and John Howard voted against the measure. Although they disagreed with the decision, others believed it was needed.

“We need a millage rate to control where we're trying to go with our budget. Without a millage rate increase we're going to have services discontinued that we basically need,” said Albany Ward 6 Commissioner Tommie Postell.

Those who approached the board making a plea to keep the millage rate the same say they will also suffer once the 1.33 percent millage increase kicks in.

During the meeting officials also discussed purchasing new cameras and police vehicles from SPLOST 6 funds, but some officials say they don't understand the need for this improvement if the city is already struggling.

“I was questioning if there’s a purpose for purchasing all of these cars if we have them sitting in the garage,” said Albany Ward 3 Commissioner Chris Pike.  

Although officials were concerned about the new purchases, the decision to purchase 32 new vehicles and new cameras passed unanimously.