The Covington Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday night to raise property taxes.
The new real estate property tax rate is $0.287 per $100 of assessed property value. This is an increase from the previous real property tax rate of $0.277 per $100 of property valuation.
The new personal, or tangible, property tax rate is $0.375 per $100 of assessed property value. The old rate was $0.326 for every $100 of assessed property value.
Property taxes are broken down into several categories. The first and usually largest chunk of your tax bill is real property tax, sometimes referred to as real estate property tax. This is essentially a tax on everything you own that’s nailed down. For residents, this means houses and other real estate property. For businesses, this means office buildings and other buildings and facilities used to conduct business.
Tangible personal property, on the other hand, generally refers to property that isn’t real estate. This mostly applies to businesses and includes machinery and other movable equipment and supplies.
The rates proposed on Tuesday represent compensating rates plus 4% increase, known more often as comp+4 rates.
Read LINK nky’s explainer below for a deeper explanation of how property taxes work.
How do property taxes work?
Property taxes are broken down into several categories. The first and usually largest chunk of your tax bill is real property tax, sometimes referred to as real estate property tax. This is essentially a tax on everything you own that’s nailed down. For residents, this means houses and other real estate property. For businesses, this means office buildings and other buildings and facilities used to conduct business.
Tangible personal property, on the other hand, is another form of property that isn’t real estate. Depending on where you live, residents may not be taxed on personal property at all–this will vary by jurisdiction.
Depending on where you live, other tax-adjacent fees may apply.
Covington property taxes were high in the 1970s—the real property tax rate was $0.78 in 1975—and began to decline in 1977. Rates fluctuated throughout the subsequent decades and most recently leveled off in fiscal year 2018 with a real property rate of $0.327 and a tangible rate of $0.349. Those rates persisted until fiscal year 2023.
The board performed a first reading of the ordinance establishing the new tax rates at its caucus meeting last week.
Readings of legislation aren’t usually performed at caucus meetings, but the board voted at the meeting to go into legislative session and perform a first reading. That night also saw a public hearing where residents could speak about the proposed rate, but no one spoke during the hearing.
The commissioners did not engage in discussion before casting their votes Tuesday night, and no one spoke about the rates during the meeting’s public comment section.
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