State Rep. Trey Lamar (Photo from Speaker Jason White on Facebook)
- Such a move could mean cuts to local governments or finding replacement revenue for the $1.2 billion collected by cities, counties and school districts annually across the Magnolia State.
Reducing the burden of property taxes for Mississippians is a top agenda item for the House Select Committee on Property Tax.
This week, the committee met with tax collectors across the state as well as the Department of Revenue to gather input on methods that could be employed to reduce the burden on Mississippi’s primary home and vehicle owners.
“Yesterday, the House Select Committee on Property Tax met for the second time, hearing from the Mississippi Department of Revenue and County Tax Collectors. House members are working to lessen the burden of real property taxes for Mississippians,” Speaker of the House of Representatives Jason White posted via social media on Thursday. “How can we further reduce the burden on the people who own a home, raise a family, operate a small business, or simply want to retire with dignity in the state they love? The House is pursuing policies that put Mississippi taxpayers and property owners first.”
Across the state, counties, cities and school districts collect a total of $1.2 billion in homestead property taxes, committee co-chair State Rep. Trey Lamar (R) told Magnolia Tribune.
“We got to figure out whether there’s a more fair way to replace that local revenue with something else,” Lamar explained. “It’s not that hard, either we’re going to have the support to cut local government or we’re going to have the support to find replacement revenue to replace what’s cut. I think there’s a more fair way to tax than taxing people’s homes and I think there’s a better way to do car tags that’s more fair.”
Lamar is unsure if the Legislature will be willing to make those tough decisions, particularly where it impacts local governments. That is why the committee is looking at other areas of fees and taxes that could be increased to offset cuts to the two target areas of homestead and car tag fees.
“We’re either going to have to cut local government or we’re going to have to find replacement revenue,” Lamar said. “If you cut local government, other areas of property tax are going to go up, or you got to cut services.”
“That would be up to the local government as far as what to cut,” Lamar clarified.
Just like the Legislature has been working to eliminate income tax and put more focus on sales taxes, Lamar said he has made it clear he wants to move toward a user fee tax system that is fairer for all.
“We’re looking at the way some states do car tags,” Lamar added. “The fact that somebody can go buy a car in one county and pay $2,000 for a tag and the same car tag in another county is $300, quite frankly that’s ridiculous.”
He said states such as Tennessee have a flat rate for car tags, typically in the range of $100 to $150 per tag.
One of the committee’s other goals is to provide Mississippians with more information on the local tax system. Lamar believes the current regulations on property tax notices are insufficient, especially since the general public is largely unaware of how property taxes work.
“We need to make sure that local property owners have more notice of how their property taxes are calculated,” Lamar said.
The information gained through these meetings will guide lawmakers in drafting legislation that could be considered when they reconvene in January.
