DUE TO EXCESS SALES TAX REVENUE
A break for taxpayers.
At a special administrative session scheduled on Tuesday, the Platte County Commission voted to reduce the county’s property tax levy to one cent per $100 of assessed valuation.
The move will cut the tax levy from its previous level of six cents, where it has been for several years. Revenue from the property tax levy is directed to the county’s general fund, which helps pay for general county operations of all offices and departments.
Scott Fricker, presiding commissioner, told The Landmark the reduction is in response to the robust status of county sales tax revenues. The bulk of the money that goes into the county’s general fund comes from a one-half cent general sales tax that has been in place for decades.
“For the last couple of years, the county has been generating excess sales tax revenues, so instead of spending it we’ve decided to give some of it back to Platte County property owners with this property tax reduction,” Fricker said.
The presiding commissioner went on to say that the commission could have reduced the tax levy to zero but doing so could be problematic down the road.
“We would reduce the levy to zero, but that would require voter approval in the future if the levy needed to be raised for any reason,” Fricker said.
The newly-adopted rate of one cent will apply to 2025 and 2026 property tax years, Fricker said.
Fricker said at six cents, the county tax levy revenue generated a budgeted $1.8 million in 2024. He said a tax rate of one cent will cut annual property tax revenue down to roughly $300,000.
Fricker confirmed that since the county has been running a surplus due to sales tax revenue, no budget cuts to any departments will be needed as a result of the property tax levy reduction.
