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Tax Impact of Bull Mountain Annexation

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	City of Tigard 13125 SW Hall Blvd. Tigard, Oregon 97223	Press Release November 21, 2003
For Immediate Release
Contact:	Craig Prosser Director of Finance City of Tigard 503-718-2486 craig@tigard-or.gov

Tax Impact of Bull Mountain Annexation
The City of Tigard has developed a table to help citizens in the Bull Mountain area understand the impact of annexation on their annual property tax bill.

"As a general rule of thumb, property taxes in the Bull Mountain area would increase between 6% and 8.5% depending on the value of the property and the school district in which the property is located," said Craig Prosser, City of Tigard Finance Director. "These higher taxes will help to pay for the higher level of services provided by the City."

The City of Tigard calculated the tax impact for a home with an assessed value of $250,000 within the Bull Mountain area. The difference amounted to an increase of $282 per year, or about 8%. The average assessed value of property on Bull Mountain is closer to $195,000. The amount of increase in property taxes is slightly less than previously reported because the 03-04 tax assessment is now available and reflects a reduction in the rate necessary to repay the library bond and an increase in the Enhanced Sheriff Patrol rate due to a change in the local option level.

Taxpayers in the City of Tigard will see a slight decrease in their property taxes because there will be more people helping to pay for the debt service on the general obligation bonds issued to construct the new Tigard Library. The savings for the owner of a property in Tigard with an assessed value of $250,000 would be about $6 per year.

"It is important to remember that assessed value is not the same as market value," said Prosser. Market value is the amount an owner could expect to receive if they sold their property today. Assessed value is set at a lower amount as a result of Ballot Measure 50 passed by voters in 1997. Residential properties in Washington County are currently assessed at about 75% of market value.

The City of Tigard put together a table that shows the tax impact of annexation on properties with different assessed values within the Bull Mountain area. Generally, properties with lower assessed values will see lower percentage increases in their taxes.

The percentage difference varies because of the Washington County Street Lighting Assessment. Unlike property tax levies, the street lighting assessment is a flat amount for each property served by street lights, regardless of assessed value. After annexation, those properties would no longer pay this assessment. The percentage savings from the elimination of this assessment is greater for lower valued properties than it is for higher valued properties.

The increase in taxes that Bull Mountain property owners would experience is the net result of several factors. First, they would start paying taxes to the City of Tigard for increased services such as police protection and for a share of "common good" services such as the Tigard Library and parks. In addition, Bull Mountain property owners would also start paying for a share of the costs of building the new Tigard Library, authorized by voters in 2002.

Offsetting these increases, Bull Mountain property owners would no longer pay taxes to support the County Enhanced Sheriff�s Patrol or the County Urban Road Maintenance District.

Bull Mountain property owners would continue to pay taxes to Washington County for general county operations and debt service on county bonds, just like city residents do. They would also continue to pay property taxes to the school district they are located in. Portions of the Bull Mountain area are served by both the Tigard-Tualatin School District and the Beaverton School District, and that will not change after annexation.