Following acceptance of a referendum by the Monroe County Community School Corporation, homeowners have begun to calculate how much their property taxes would increase if the measure passes. But the math is more complicated than it looks.
Literature released by the MCCSC estimates a $175,000 home will be subject to about $114 extra in yearly property taxes if the referendum meets with voter support. But on the surface, the math supporting that figure doesn't seem to add up. If you take that $175,000 figure and then multiply it by the $0.14 for every $100 in assessed valuation that the levy will raise, you actually get a figure more than double what the MCCSC suggests. But Comptroller Tim Thrasher said there are a number of discounts to consider first.
"There's a $45,000 dedcation to start with, so from the $175,000, deduct $45,000," he said. "And then again for residential property only, there's a 35% supplemental deduction, I think it's called. So you would subtract the $45,000 from the $175,000, take 35% of the amount that's left and deduct that and then divide by 100 and multiply by the tax rate [.1402]."
But all homes in Monroe County are currently undergoing a reassessment, meaning the numbers upon which MCCSC leaders based their calculations could be altered. If the referendum passes and the assessed valuation goes down, the school corporation will not realize the $7.5 million it hopes to raise. If property values rise and the referendum passes, MCCSC will take in more money than it expected. Thrasher says the corporation will keep the cash, but would have options: It could place it in a rainy day fund to offset future budget shortfalls or the tax levy could be lessened in future years by an amount equal to the original overage.
To help assess the tax burden for an individual home, Thrasher says MCCSC plans to offer a calculator on its website which will include all relevant deductions.
