Jefferson County will collect more money for each mill levied, figures released last week by the Montana Department of Revenue reveal. The DOR notified the county that the taxable value of properties in the county has risen from $29,942,601 in 2016 to $30,338,943 in 2017.
The county uses the taxable values to set mill levies which determine how much each individual taxpayer must pay in property taxes. Property tax collections are the primary revenue source for local governments to provide public services such as police and fire protection, schools, roads and bridges, and public health and safety.
While the market value of properties in the county rose by just over nine percent, that is not necessarily an indication of what county-wide taxes will do. If county officials decide to fund county operations with the same number of dollars as in the past year, taxpayers could expect to see roughly a nine percent drop in those taxes. But when inflationary costs for services to the county, such as higher heating prices, and increases in services for county residents are figured in, that could change.
