Police jury to consider tax adjustments tonight

Today the Lincoln Parish Police Jury will consider “rolling forward” the property taxes it levies, resulting in an increase of nearly $ 375,000 that it would collect from property owners around the parish this year.

The jury will hold a public hearing on the matter at 7 p. m. today in its conference room on the third floor of the Lincoln Parish Courthouse as it becomes the latest local board to tackle the question of what to do with its tax rates in the wake of a parishwide property reassessment that has reportedly left many owners in sticker shock.

The property taxes an owner must pay come from the property’s assessed value times all the millage rates levied by local taxing bodies like the police jury, minus a homestead exemption if applicable.

That assessed value is typically recalculated once every four years, and that includes this year.

After each reassessment, millage rates are adjusted so that the revenue taxing bodies bring in is the same as before — meaning if property values go up, the tax rate goes down to keep collections constant, and vice versa.

But the boards that levy the taxes, like the jury, have the option to immediately raise those rates back to the maximum level that was last passed by the public at the polls — meaning if property values go up, owners would pay more.

That’s called “ rolling forward” the taxes, and that’s what it appears the jury is poised to do tonight.

The agenda, as well as a press release issued Friday, indicate the jury will hold a hearing on rolling forward all five of its property taxes: two for its general fund ( one levied inside the city of Ruston, one outside), one for road construction, one for road maintenance, and one for operations of the Lincoln Parish Library.

Here are the increases in total collections that would come from each of these taxes if the jury rolls them forward:

• General alimony: $1,430,160 total collections, $ 36,961increase • Road construction: $2,431,900 total collections, $ 110,290 increase

• Road maintenance: $2,431,900 total collections, $ 110,290 increase

• Library operation: $2,476,016 total collections, $ 115,805 increase Neither document indicates what millage rates the jury will consider rolling these taxes to, nor what rates they would shift back to if the jury chooses not to roll them forward.

Jury administrative personnel could not be reached for comment by press time Monday.

Taxing bodies often roll forward their property taxes after a reassessment because if they don’t, they can’t later go back to that maximum millage rate passed by voters.

But last week the Lincoln Parish School Board — which collects by far the most property taxes of any entity in the parish — chose not to roll forward the majority of its millages, opting to collect less from taxpayers than it could have, in response to the hefty reassessments owners have reported.