The Kenton County Fiscal Court is lowering its real property tax rate and tangible personal property tax rate to their lowest level since 2003.
On Tuesday, the court passed an ordinance that would lower the county’s real property tax rate to 13.3 cents per $100 valuation and personal property tax rate to 16.5 cents per $100 valuation. Last year, Kenton County set its real property tax rate at 14.4 cents and personal property tax rate at 19.1 cents.
Kenton County’s motor vehicle tax rate remains the same at 15.8 cents per $100 valuation.
“This is actually a 7.6% reduction in rates and will take us to the lowest property tax rates since 2003,” Kenton County Judge/Executive Kris Knochelmann said during the meeting.
That year, Kenton County had a real property tax rate of 13.1 cents and personal property tax rate of 15.8 cents, according to the Kentucky Department of Revenue Property Valuation records.
The Kentucky Department of Revenue defines real property as land and any permanent structures attached to it. Tangible personal property is defined as physical and taxable property like manufacturing machinery, artwork, antiques, coin collections, and construction equipment. Registered cars and watercraft are excluded for qualifying as tangible personal property.
At a meeting last Nov. 8, the fiscal court voted to increase the county’s occupational license tax, or payroll tax rate, from .7097% to .9097%. From the court’s perspective, their decision to raise the occupational license tax would allow them to lower their property tax. During that meeting, Kenton County Treasurer Roy Cox said the county puts a greater burden on the property owners.
Kenton County generates more budgetary revenue from property taxes than occupational license tax. During a Kenton County mayors meeting this January, Knochelmann said the court’s occupational license tax hike was attempting to solve the “balance of revenue generation” between payroll and property taxes.
