March 30th, 2015 by WCBC Radio
The Allegany County Commissioners conducted a constant yield public hearing Thursday with much of the discussion dedicated to providing clarification of the newspaper advertisement that ran indicating the possibility of a property tax increase. The county is reducing the county tax rate; however the proposed rate still falls above the constant yield rate for Allegany County, which thereby requires the county to notify the public of a property tax increase. Director of Finance Jason Bennett provided a brief overview of the numbers and an explanation of the notice. The advertisement stated that property tax assessments, known as the assessable base, for the outlying county, excluding towns, has increased from $2.17 billion to $2.182 billion for a net increase of 0.5 percent. Also receiving increases in base assessments were Barton, Frostburg, Lonaconing, Midland and Westernport. Overall, including the county’s towns and cities, the total assessable base fell from $3.52 billion to $3.498 billion. Bennett explained that although the county is planning a reduction in the county tax rate, the reduction will not be enough to fully offset the increase in assessments. Despite the county’s tax rate reduction of one-tenth of a penny, the county will take in $246,674 less than last year. ..
.jpg)
