Dear Editor,
The recent article in The Yazoo Herald about the Yazoo County Board of Supervisors not increasing ad valorem taxes sounds like good news.
However, Yazoo County taxpayers better wait for their tax bill to come before they jump for joy. Many, if not most, taxpayers will see an increase in their taxes. This is due to the reappraial of property in the county that is mandated by the state Legislature.
If the millage rate stays the same, and the appraised value of your property increases, then your taxes will go up. This hits landowners especially hard because it is reappraised every year. Homes, automobiles and other property are done every five years.
Agricultural land has seen an increase in taxes of around 10 percent each year over the past three years. Many homeowners will be affected this year. Taxpayers can go to the tax assessor’s office to see if their property value has been increased this year.
The only way to offset this tax increase would have been for the Board of Supervisors to lower the tax millage. At the recent public hearing they stated that they can’t afford to lower the millage because of a loss in revenue from the state oil and gas severance fund. It appears that the taxpayers of Yazoo County will make up for the loss.
Billy Robinson
