St. Paul, Minnesota — After more than a decade of property tax hikes, Minnesotans will pay less in property taxes in 2014 in large part due to direct property tax relief included in the 2013 state budget. New analysis released yesterday by non-partisan House Research confirms a report provided by the Minnesota Department of Revenue report last Friday that showed property taxes would fall in 2014. Last year’s state budget included $133 million in direct relief for homeowners and renters through the new Homestead Credit Refund and expanded Renter’s Credit.
According to non-partisan House Research, when including direct relief, statewide property taxes for homeowners are decreasing by $161 million or 4.9 percent.
“Property taxes have nearly doubled in Minnesota over the last decade, making this welcome news to families and businesses,” said state Representative Mary Sawatzky (DFL – Willmar). “The increased direct relief in our budget will put more money in the pockets of Minnesotans.”
As part of our budget, 2000 homeowners receiving a property tax refund in Kandiyohi County will receive an average refund increase of $173. 450 renters in Kandiyohi County who qualify for the Renter’s Credit will receive an average credit increase of $102.
Homeowners in Southwest Cities — which includes Kandiyohi County — are set to see an 8.8 percent decrease in their property taxes. Small business will see an 8.0 percent decrease while larger business will see a 3.3 percent decrease.
Homeowners in Southwest Towns will see a 10.5 percent decrease; small businesses will see a 10.4 percent decrease, and larger businesses will see a 5.8 decrease.
For the local area, the certified levies break down as follows: Kandiyohi County has a 1.2 percent increase, Willmar has left their levy flat, New London has a 2.4 percent increase, Spicer has a 0.2 percent increase, Pennock has left their levy flat, Atwater has proposed a 0.8 percent increase, and Kandiyohi has a 4.5 percent increase.
The Willmar Public School District has proposed a 27.2 percent cut in their levy, New London-Spicer School District has proposed a 6 percent decrease, and A.C.G.C has proposed a 4 percent decrease.
Due in large part to a 23 percent and 29 percent increase in market value respectively, Agriculture Homestead Land will see a 14 percent increase in Southwest cities and a 7.9 percent increase in Southwest towns. Legislators will be working this session to expand the Agriculture Market Value Homestead Credit to provide immediate relief to farmers in 2014.
“We made great progress on property taxes for homeowners, but we know more work remains to be done,” said Rep. Sawatzky. “We need to continue working to bring down property taxes for our farmers and I plan on working with other rural legislators to do just that this session.
“We’re making strides on lowering property taxes, but we know we have more work to do. This news is a step in the right direction and I’ll continue working to build on it.”
Rep. Sawatzky encourages constituents to contact her with any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas. Rep. Sawatzky can be reached by phone at 651-296-6206 or by email at rep.mary.sawatzky@house.mn. Constituents can also visit Rep. Sawatzky’s AreaVoices blog, legislative page and sign up for email updates.