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The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
Property tax freeze talks will be postponed until next year in Hamilton County.
The optional program that local governments can enact that freezes property taxes for older adults will not be discussed again until July 15th, 2026. The county commission chose to defer a vote on the issue in order to collect more data on how many people might participate in the program.
Each county that opts into the program, freezes the property taxes at their current rate for residents who are 65 or older who make under a certain level of income. The income threshold is chosen by each county.
Commissioner David Sharpe who has championed the program says some property values in his district in Red Bank have more than doubled.
Last week, when the Hamilton County Commission debated the merits of implementing a tax freeze program, some commissioners expressed concern about the cost of implementation.
County Finance Director Lee Brouner recommended against setting the program up in Hamilton County for the time being. Brouner said that startup costs would entail $350,000 with another $250,000 every year after that as three new employees would need to be hired, two in the trustee’s office and another in the assessor’s office, as well as new software and office related costs.
Commissioners were also hesitant after realizing that implementing a tax freeze program would only benefit senior taxpayers in the event of another tax increase at the next reappraisal which won’t happen until 2029.
Brouner had not changed his position at this week’s meeting and still recommended against it.
In light of Brouner’s recommendation, Commissioner Joe Graham proposed amending Sharpe’s original resolution so that the program could go into effect in 2027.
Commissioner Lee Helton offered up another option which was to delay until just before 2026 elections. The commission passes Helton’s proposal unanimously.
The county does participate in a state controlled property tax relief program for older adults. Under the relief program, those making $37,530 or less qualify for relief for up to $65,400 of the value of their home. The county has no say in the income cutoff for the relief program which can only be raised or lowered by the Tennessee General Assembly.
The City of Chattanooga has run its own tax freeze program since 2017. Brouner plans to use data from their program to estimate potential numbers for a county run program.
Chattanooga expanded their program in August to include older adults making $60,000 or less, up from the previous income threshold of $48,250. The expansion comes after recent data in the city showed a historic jump in property values of 60 percent this year.
Waiting until July will give time for the county to get accurate numbers about how many residents the City of Chattanooga will have enrolled in their program.
The last time the commission looked in depth at the issue of a property tax freeze was in 2017, and after looking at both tax freeze and tax relief options, they chose tax relief due to the income level being significantly less to qualify at $37,530 compared to $48,250 for the tax freeze.
The tax relief program is used by more cities and counties throughout Tennessee than the tax freeze program. Only three counties in the state use both programs.Tax relief for the elderly this year is $248, and goes up to $1,326 for disabled veterans and widows of disabled veterans.
The Tennessee General Assembly passed the tax freeze program in 2007 which outlines how local governments can implement the optional program in order to freeze property taxes for residents who are 65 or older (or who make less than a certain income level) at their current rates.
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
