Property tax relief may be on the way for eligible Topekans. Here's who might qualify.
Topeka's mayor and city council next month will consider providing property tax relief to property owners who meet guidelines that include having a total household income of $37,750 or less.
Council policy and finance committee members Spencer Duncan and Hannah Naeger voted 2-0 Thursday to recommend the mayor and council approve the proposal involved.
City staff members remain in the process of creating that proposal and working out the details, said Duncan, the measure's sponsor.
The measure's finalized version will be placed on the city's website before the mayor and council consider it, which will likely be July 11, he said.
The policy and finance committee's third member, Councilwoman Christina Valdivia-Alcala, was not yet present at the time of Thursday's vote. She began taking part in the meeting by Zoom soon afterward.
Here's what Topeka's property tax relief proposal would do
Duncan's proposal would enable eligible property owners to receive a rebate of the property taxes they pay that are levied specifically by Topeka's city government.
The website of the Shawnee County Clerk's office says the city currently assesses a levy of 38.963 mills. That amounts to $448.07 annually in city property taxes for the owner of a $100,000 home.
The city levy is part of a total property tax bill that includes levies that help finance other government entities, including Shawnee County, Washburn University, public school districts and local transit, library and airport authorities.
Eligibility hinges on Topeka household income being $37,750 or less
Under Duncan's proposal, the city would make the rebate available to all residents who pay city property taxes and are eligible for a Homestead Refund from the State of Kansas.
Taxpayers wouldn't need to qualify for the state refund to receive the city refund.
"We'd just be using their criteria and and creating a local program that essentially mirrors the state program," Duncan said.
To qualify for a Homestead Refund from the state, the website for that program says, a property owner currently must be a Kansas resident who lived in Kansas the entire year and had a total household income of $37,750 or less.
As the state's minimum income figure rises in coming years, the city's minimum would be adjusted to reflect that, Duncan said.
Eligible property owners must also meet one of these criteria
To be eligible for a state Homestead Refund, property owners must also meet one of the following criteria:
• Having been born before Jan. 1, 1967.
• Having been blind or totally and permanently disabled all of the previous year, regardless of their age.
• Or having a dependent child who lived with them the entire year, was born before Jan. 1 of that year and was under the age of 18 the entire year.
Arrangement not a 'budget buster'
Maintaining the proposed property tax rebate program would not be a "budget buster" for the city, though it would clearly cost hundreds of thousands of dollars annually, Duncan said.
He said he hopes to see other taxing entities offer similar rebates.
While eligible property owners would need to pay their city property taxes to receive a rebate, Duncan said he hoped that the city — if it implements his proposed program — would eventually arrange for eligible residents to simply be exempted from paying city property taxes.
Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: City of Topeka considers providing some residents property tax relief
