JACKSON — Mississippi homeowners older than 65 could get a break on their property taxes under a proposal some lawmakers are pushing.
The House Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday passed House Bill 216, which would freeze assessed values of homes owned by senior citizens and disabled people unless their homes are renovated or expanded. Taxes could still rise if local governments raise tax rates.
Rep. Manly Barton, R-Moss Point, said the bill is designed to give tax relief to residents of counties where increasing property values can cause people to owe more taxes even if tax rates stay flat.
“What we are trying to do is to protect those seniors who are on a fixed income,” Barton said.
County supervisors are opposing the measure, saying it will deprive counties of needed tax money, or shift tax burdens onto others. Steve Gray, a lobbyist for the Mississippi Association of Supervisors, said it is unclear how the measure would impact counties.
“There are too many unknowns,” he said after the committee passed the bill, sending it to the full House for further debate.
Currently, regular taxpayers get an exemption on up to the first $300 in taxes. People older than 65 and those who are totally disabled get an exemption from taxes on their first $75,000 in value.
Though he supported the bill, Rep. Tommy Reynolds, D-Water Valley, questioned whether senior citizens were the only people deserving of tax relief.
“I really think the ones that are having a hard time in the economy are young married people with children,” Reynolds said. “The people who are our age are not having a hard time.”
Last year, a plan that would have increased general homestead exemptions from $300 a year to $360 a year died an abrupt death after House leaders decided its $69 million price tag was too steep. The state is supposed to pay for $100 of the regular exemption, but is currently $3 million short of the $87 million needed for full funding.
Barton said that an analysis of tax rolls in Jackson County showed that after the last countywide reappraisal of property, the measure would have cost about $600,000 in revenue. He said increased property values still increased tax revenue by $8.6 million.
Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jeff Smith, R-Columbus, pledged to get a statewide estimate before the House considers the measure.
Online:
■ House Bill 216: bit.ly/1EKr4FR
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