Cape County's property tax to rise

The Cape Girardeau County Commission on Thursday set tax levies for the 2014 tax year, including an increase in the general revenue property tax.

The commissioners voted to set the property tax levy at $0.0609 per $100 assessed valuation. The 2013 rate was $0.0447.

The owner of a home with a fair-market value of $100,000 would see the county's annual property tax rise about $3 -- from $8.49 to $11.57.

When the reason behind the rate change was questioned at a public hearing held before the vote, the commissioners said sluggish sales-tax revenue played a biggest role. The amount of the levy is determined through a calculation from the state auditor's office. The calculation uses the county's total assessed valuation and sales tax revenue to come up with the levy.

This method allows the county to use property taxes as a sort of safety net if sales-tax revenue does not cover expenses.

In 1979, Cape Girardeau County voters passed a measure approving a sales tax and reduced the property tax levy by 50 percent of the sales tax collected.

The county bases the sales tax on the revenue generated in the first six months of the year. County sales tax reports from January through June show numbers were down. The June report showed the county collected a year-to-date total of $4,469,133.25. That number was down 1.25 percent from the 2013 report.

Sales tax revenue seemed to rebound in later months, however. July and August reports showed an increase compared to the previous year.

County officials have pointed out it's difficult to pinpoint the cause of the fluctuation in the numbers. The recent increase could reflect a boost in consumer spending. It might reflect an unexpected coincidence of taxes being paid, or a delay in state reimbursements, or a combination of the three.

If the positive trend continues, the tax levy could decrease next year, the commissioners said.

Until 2012, the property tax rate had been set to zero since 1982 because of climbing sales tax revenue. Recently, the county has experienced flat growth in sales tax numbers. In January, the commission approved an $11.8 million budget for 2014, which requires similarly flat spending by county officeholders.

srinehart@semissourian.com

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