Police jury lowers library tax, raises others for net wash

In the wake of the latest property reassessments in Lincoln Parish, the police jury has shifted its property tax rates in a way that nets virtually no change for taxpayers’ bills, even as property values have largely increased.

The jury accomplished that Tuesday by rolling back the tax that funds the Lincoln Parish Library, removing some $265,000 in would- be surplus revenue from that facility, while rolling forward taxes that fund road construction and maintenance around the parish, as well as the jury’s general fund.

“We’re offsetting an increase in the road and general fund money with a decrease from the library millage,” District 5 juror Logan Hunt summarized during Tuesday’s meeting.

Specifically, the jury “rolled forward” four of its five property taxes to their maximum rates passed by the public:

• 1.68 mills for the general fund on properties inside the city limits of Ruston

• 3.37 mills for the general fund on properties outside Ruston

• 4.41 mills parishwide for road construction • 4.41 mills parishwide for road maintenance That’s the same rate as last year for each of those taxes. But because property values across the parish mostly went up in this year’s reassessment — typically performed every four years — those rates will bring in more tax collections than before.

To compensate, the jury “ rolled back” the tax that funds the library from the previous 4.49 mills to 3.80 mills. Even with the increased property assessments, that’ll mean about $265,000 in cut revenue for the library compared to last year.

All told, these moves mean the jury projects to collect about $4,000 less from property taxpayers than last year.

“We’re trying to do what we can for the people of the parish,” District 3 juror Dan Lord said.

As for the library cut, officials say this is surplus revenue being shaved away, meaning the library won’t see cuts to its operating expenses.

“I’m not here with any complaints, and I’m not here asking for any money for the budget,” library Board of Control President Jan Canterbury said. “(Library Director Jeremy Bolom) has done an excellent job of keeping the library under budget.”

With the millage reduction, the library is expected to bring in slightly under $2.1 million in tax revenue for 2024. The tax makes up the vast majority of the library’s funding.

According to the library’s budgets, it spent just shy of $2 million in 2023, even while bringing in more than $2.2 million, and planned to spend around the same again this year.

“The people of the community should be happy about this,” Canterbury said. “We’re not taking any services away from the library.”

Meanwhile, unlike the library, jury officials said the road and general funds couldn’t afford to cut any revenue, as materials and other expenses have continued to soar post-pandemic years.

“With all the added expenditures we have in the general fund, we’re trying to keep up with that,” Treasurer Michael Sutton said. “Road maintenance and construction, same story.”

Road materials like gravel and asphalt have doubled in price since 2020. A dump truck that cost the jury $87,000 in 2017 cost $184,000 in 2022, Sutton said.

Even with their millages rolled forward and bringing in more taxes, the road funds are looking at a $300,000 deficit against projected expenses, Sutton said.

At the end of the day, 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 for residential property.

The police jury’s property taxes accounted for just 13% of those collected from taxpayers across the parish in 2023, according to figures from Assessor Billy McBride’s office.

The assessed value is typically recalculated once every for years, including this year.

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

But the boards that levy the taxes have the option to immediately raise those rates back to the maximum level that was last passed by the public at the polls.

That’s “rolling forward” the taxes, and that’s what the jury did to each of its taxes except the library one, which it “rolled back” even lower than the assessor’s adjusted millage.