- What are the responsibilities of the Department of Assessment and GIS?
- What is a notice of value?
- Who do I contact with questions about the notice and the new value?
- Where do I go if I disagree with the assessed value of my property?
- What is the Board of Equalization?
- When do I file the BOE petition?
- How is an appeal processed?
- Why don't I have a "previous value" on my notice?
- What does GIS mean?
- How do I contact the Department of Assessment & GIS?
1. What are the responsibilities of the Department of Assessment and GIS?
The Department of Assessment and GIS carries out the provisions of Washington law and the state constitution. The department must:
- Process property ownership changes
- Maintain parcel boundary maps
- Maintain building and property characteristics
- Administer programs for tax relief
- Analyze market data for property values
- Uniformly assess property at 100% of market value
2. What is a notice of value?
Property owners receive a notice of value when the department determines there has been a change in their property value. The notice shows previous and current year's values. Current values are used to compute the following year's taxes and include exemptions and deferrals on record.
3. Who do I contact with questions about the notice and the new value?
If you have questions about the value or the characteristics of your property, please call one of our review appraisers at (360) 397-2391. In-person meetings should be scheduled in advance.
4. Where do I go if I disagree with the assessed value of my property?
If you disagree with the value placed on your property,you can file an appeal with the Clark County Board of Equalization at (360) 397-2337. Property owners are encouraged to talk with a county review appraiser to verify that our assessment records are accurate. Errors may be corrected without a hearing.
5. What is the Board of Equalization?
The Board of Equalization is an impartial citizen board that hears property value disputes and determines assessed value. The board is located at 500 West 8th Street, Suite 19 (lower level). You can call them at (360) 397-2337 for additional information or to request forms.
6. When do I file the BOE petition?
Petitions must be filed with the BOE within 60 days after your notice of value was mailed. To protect your right to appeal, we recommend you file a petition while working with a review appraiser.
7. How is an appeal processed?
After filing a timely appeal, one of our review appraisers from the Department of Assessment and GIS will examine the appraisal and review your petition to make a final determination. If you still disagree, a hearing before the Board of Equalization will be scheduled. The board reviews sales evidence submitted by you and the review appraiser, and sets a final value.
8. Why don't I have a "previous value" on my notice?
The notice will show no previous value if the parcel size or acreage has changed, or, in the case of mobile homes, the property was not in the county the previous year.
9. What does GIS mean?
GIS is an acronym for Geographic Information System. GIS is a computer-based mapping and geographic analysis system operated by the department. The services and products they provide are available to the public and to government entities in the region.
10. How do I contact the Department of Assessment & GIS?
Our office is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday- Friday, except Wednesday when our hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. You can call us from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday- Friday at (360) 397-2391, or e-mail us at assrgis@clark.wa.gov or visit our office on the second floor of the Clark County Public Service Center, 1300 Franklin Street, Vancouver, WA. Our mailing address is Clark County Department of Assessment & GIS, P.O. Box 5000, Vancouver, WA 98666-5000.
- Why are the tax statements different this year?
- Is this a state or a local property tax?
- Who determines the amount of our property taxes ?
- What is the difference between a property tax levy and a property tax levy rate?
- Are there any limits on property taxes?
- Is there a limit on my individual property tax?
- Why have my property taxes increased?
- What impact do special levies and bonds have on property taxes?
- Why are government agencies getting more taxes while the economy is so bad?
- Why am I paying taxes on an assessed value that is more than my property is worth today?
- How are levy rates computed?
- How are taxes computed?
- Where can I go to get more information about levy rates and property values?
- Where can I go to get more information about my tax statement?
After 25 years on the same computer software, both the operating system and the assessment and treasury software needed to be replaced. We are taking this opportunity to further improve the way we do our business. We hope these new statements better inform you about where your tax dollars are being spent.
2. Is this a state or a local property tax?It’s both. The state receives a share of the property tax for funding local schools statewide. The remaining share of the property tax is distributed among 42 different taxing districts in Clark County. These local taxing districts include fire districts, school districts, port districts, cities, and the county, among others.
3. Who determines the amount of our property taxes?The rules and procedures for property taxes are governed largely by the state to ensure consistency and equity statewide. Following these rules and procedures, the county assessor sets property values and the county treasurer collects property taxes. The amount of money to be collected in property taxes is determined by the individual taxing districts.
4. What is the difference between a property tax levy and a property tax levy rate?A property tax levy refers to an amount of money that is collected or “levied” against taxable property. A property tax levy rate is the amount of money for every $1,000 of assessed property value necessary to generate the levy amount. Each taxing district has its own levy and levy rate. The taxes you pay are a combination of the levy rates of all the overlapping taxing districts your property is within, multiplied by your assessed property value.
5. Are there any limits on property taxes?Yes. Washington’s property tax system has several built-in limitations.
- Each taxing district has a maximum levy rate it may collect. This levy rate may be exceeded only when authorized by the voters of the district. For example, the county’s maximum rate is $1.80 per thousand dollars of assessed value.
- There is also a limit on the combined levy rate for all non-voted levies within an area. For example, the combined levy rate limit for all local taxing districts, exclusive of the state, is $5.90 per thousand dollars of assessed value.
- The Washington Constitution limits the total of all regular non-voted levies to 1% of the property’s assessed value.
- The most recent and highly-publicized limitation is the 1% cap on the annual growth in property tax budgets. An important distinction is that the 1% limit is on a jurisdiction’s property tax budget, not on taxes for individual properties.
The individual and combined levy rate limits, as well as the constitutional 1% levy limit, apply to individual properties. If one or a group of properties exceed the limit, without voter approval, the rates will be reduced in the order prescribed by statute. These reductions continue until the individual and aggregate limits are no longer exceeded.
7. Why have my property taxes increased?
It seems intuitive that when property values go up, taxes will go up; and when property values go down, taxes will go down. Actually, the taxes you pay are determined by the taxing districts that provide you services, such as fire and police protection, schools, parks, and roads. When the costs of providing these services go up, so do the budgets of the taxing districts. And this is typically reflected in increased property tax collection, up to the 1% allowed.
Another reason your property taxes may have increased is that your portion of the taxes collected has gone up. That is, you are paying a greater share of the taxes than you did in the previous year. This is caused by some properties growing in value faster than others.
8. What impact do special levies and bonds have on property taxes?
Voter-approved special levies and bonds can have a significant influence on property taxes. These bonds and levies make up 25% to 35% of a typical combined levy rate and tax bill. Since they are voter-approved, they are not subject to the same limits as regular property tax levies, rates, and budgets. If a new levy passes, rates and taxes can rise dramatically; conversely, if a levy fails, they can drop significantly.
9. Why are government agencies getting more taxes while the economy is so bad?
In 2009, taxing districts in the county may levy up to 1% more in general property taxes than the previous year. For some districts, this is their only revenue source. Other districts rely on multiple sources of revenue. For example, Clark County’s 1% will provide an additional $500,000 for the general fund; however, this will be accompanied by decreases in other key revenues.
- The value of new construction added to the tax base during 2008 was down 34% from 2007 and down 50% from the $1.4 billion added in 2006.
- County sales tax revenue for January 2009 was down 21% from January 2008. If this trend continues, 2009 will generate $6.5 million less than 2008.
- County Real Estate Excise Tax revenue for January 2009 was down 54% from January 2008. If this trend continues, 2009 will generate $2.5 million less than 2008.
For the next two years, county departments have reduced their budgets between 6% and 12%. Part of that reduction was the elimination of 157 staff positions.
10. Why am I paying taxes on an assessed value that is more than my property is worth today?
The state requires that county assessors establish the full market value of properties on January 1st of the assessment year. This is done to assure that property owners statewide are treated similarly and fairly. Your property was appraised as of January 1, 2008, for taxes you are paying in 2009. These 2008 values are based on the analysis of sales of similar properties sold in 2007. This analysis showed that the value of properties in some areas should be raised, some lowered, and some remain unchanged. Notices were mailed in June 2008 to those property owners whose values changed.
This year, we will be analyzing sales from 2008 to establish values as of January 1, 2009, for taxes due in 2010. Market conditions in 2008 will be reflected in values on the January 2009 assessment date, and will be used to determine assessed values for computing the 2010 tax statements.
11. How are levy rates computed?
The formula for computing taxes and levy rates is a product of each taxing district’s budget divided by the total assessed value of the geographic area the district serves. This produces a levy rate, which is the amount of taxes that will be paid for each $1,000 of assessed value. The formula for determining an taxing district’s levy rate looks like this:
Taxing District Budget (limited to 1% growth) ÷ Taxing District Assessed Value = Levy Rate
In reviewing the formula, you will note that when assessed values rise and the taxing district budget is fixed, the levy rate decreases. When assessed values fall and the taxing district budget is fixed, the levy rate increases. In both cases, the levy rate is adjusted to generate adequate revenues to fund the taxing district’s budget.
12. How are taxes computed?
Once the levy rates are established, the rate for the area in which a property resides is multiplied by the value of that individual property to establish the taxes owed. The formula for determining individual property taxes looks like this:
Property Assessed Value (divided by 1,000) x Levy Rate = Property Tax
The overall value of the taxing district may be reduced, even though some of the individual properties are not. This overall reduction causes the levy rate to increase, and for the individual property owner whose value did not change, taxes will increase.
13. Where can I go to get more information about levy rates and property values?Clark County Assessor Linda Franklin is available to speak at neighborhood meetings and to business groups.
You can call us at (360) 397-2391.
14. Where can I go to get more information about my tax statement?
You may call the Clark County Treasurer’s Office at (360) 397-2252.
