Supervisors OK lower property tax levy

Washington County property owners will pay a lower property tax rate in the upcoming fiscal year, which begins July 1.

At Tuesday's meeting, the Washington County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the property tax levies for fiscal year 2022.

The countywide tax levy will be $8.25895 per $1,000 of valuation, down .18 percent from the current levy of $8.27375.

That would result in a tax reduction of $2.22 for a property with a valuation of $150,000.

All county property owners pay the countywide levy; however, property owners in rural areas pay an additional rural services basic levy.

The rural rate will go down significantly in the upcoming fiscal year, from $2.66325 per $1,000 of valuation to $1.9082.

That translates to an additional reduction of $113.26 for a rural property valued at $150,000.

County Budget Director Cindy Sinn explained that the significant reduction in the rural services basic levy is due to the county paying the final principal and interest on a rural roads bond this year.

The total amount the county is expecting to collect in property taxes next fiscal year is just under $12.49 million, down from $12.71 million this year.

'This year, we're asking for less in property tax askings,” Sinn said.

Also Tuesday, the board passed a budget for fiscal year 2022 with $32 million in expenditures, down from $33.89 million this year.

The biggest reductions come from capital projects at $2.13 million, down from $4.83 million, and debt service at $2.7 million, down from $3.2 million.