 |
|
|||
Report: Property tax burden greater on homeowners 65 plus Tennessee lawmakers vote on tax "freeze" possible next week The report comes as the Tennessee General Assembly considers a property tax freeze for homeowners 65 and older. The legislation would allow local counties and municipalities to freeze property tax rates at current levels for those with incomes below the median for residents 65 and older. "Tennessee lawmakers can do something now, before the legislature adjourns to give senior homeowners the relief promised by the Constitutional Amendment 2," said AARP Tennessee Director Rebecca Kelly. "The amendment was adopted overwhelming by the voters of Tennessee and now the state legislature should pass the law to make property tax relief a reality." The state House and Senate are expected to take up the property tax freeze legislation next week. The bills, SB 2 sponsored by Sen. Mark Norris and HB 1033 by Rep. John DeBerry, are currently in the respective Finance, Ways and Means Committees. The AARP Public Policy Institute report found that the property tax burden for Tennessee homeowners 65 and older amounted to 2.5 percent of income compared to 1.5 percent of income for households of owners younger than 65. .The property tax burden for those over 65 with an income of less than $25,000 is 5.3%. "On the whole, the average residential property tax burdens of homeowners 65-plus exceed the property tax burdens for each of the states," the report concluded. The AARP Public Policy Institute study used data from the 2005 American Community Survey (ACS), a large national survey from the U.S. Department of Commerce's Census Bureau. See Information Here The property tax burden was defined as the ratio of property taxes divided by the combination of family income plus the income from any unmarried partner for each homeowner household. The median property tax burden for each group (all homeowners, homeowners under age 65, and homeowners age 65 and older) was used as the best estimate for the overall state property tax burden. The bills in the Tennessee General Assembly will allow local governments to freeze property tax liability for the principal residence of homeowners 65 and older. Eligibility would be based on income levels below the median for those 65 or older in the county.
With 696,000 members in Tennessee, AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization that helps people 50+ have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial and affordable to them and society as a whole. We produce AARP The Magazine, published bimonthly; AARP Bulletin, our monthly newspaper; AARP Segunda Juventud, our bimonthly magazine in Spanish and English; NRTA Live & Learn, our quarterly newsletter for 50+ educators; and our website, www.aarp.org. AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity that provides security, protection and empowerment to older persons in need with support from thousands of volunteers, donors, and sponsors. We have staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rice and the U.S. Virgin Islands. ### Patrick Willard |
