The State property tax rate to pay for General Obligation bonds is held constant.  In each bond cycle, the DFA* and LFC** determine a total capacity available based on paying off bonds sold ten years ago and on current property valuation. Using a constant property tax rate of 1.36 mills, the State Board of Finance calculates the amount of available bond capacity. This year, that amount is $290,618,600, which the 2024 legislature divided up into four categories:

1. Senior Centers - $30,758,100

2. Libraries - $19,305,000

3. Academic Construction - $230,258,400

4. Public Safety Communications Systems - $10,297,100

Within the total package, the library bond is only 6.6% of the total.  The State uses the example of the property tax cost to a homeowner of a home valued at $100,000. There is a variable that when the value of a property increases over past years, the tax will be correspondingly greater.

If all four ballot issues are approved by the voters in November 2024, the average cost to the owner of a property worth $100,000 over a 10-year period will be $10.81 per year.  Of that $10.81 average cost per year, $1.15 is attributable to the senior facilities bond, $0.72 to the library acquisitions bond, $8.56 to the higher education bond and $0.38 to the  public safety communications bond.  If any or all of the 2024 bond issues were defeated, the State property tax mill rate could be expected to decline modestly.

By Joe Sabatini

 *Department of Finance and Administration - The Executive  Department that manages state finance

**Legislative Finance Committee - the Legislature's interim joint committee on budgets and capital projects