Pierce County Property Tax Increase for Flood Control District
Property tax rates in Pierce County will be going up another 10 cents for every $1,000 of assessed value.
The $25 increase for the average homeowner will go to the County’s new flood control zone district created last April. The tax will be applied to all property owners, not just those in unincorporated Pierce County.
The 10 cent increase, less than the 50 cents the district is authorized to collect, is anticipated to generate nearly $7 million annually for projects aimed at limiting flood damage, such as rebuilding levees and buying up flood-prone properties. Ten percent will go back to cities and unincorporated areas for their own stormwater and flood control projects. The increase will start showing up on property tax statements this coming February.
It’s pretty clear that some areas of the county need the help in responding to flooding, but other areas are less directly impacted. Some residents of areas like Gig Harbor, which see less risk of flooding, object to the blanket tax on the grounds that they have little to gain. Supporters of the flood control district argue that the benefits of protecting infrastructure like I-5, the Port of Tacoma, and sewage treatment plants extend to the county as a whole.
So, are you okay with your contribution for the greater good?
Read more from the TNT.
Filed under: Elsewhere, Pierce County, Public Safety
3 comments
J John November 8, 2012
I understand the need to protect major infastructure but I have a real problem paying for all those house farms that went up in the past couple decades in Fife, Orting and Puyallup. Building a house there is like building in tornado alley and being shocked when one hits. I expect to be called out by the “what about earthquakes, they hit us all” people, but the best flood avoidance is building your house NOT on the historic flood plain.
M Michael November 8, 2012
Yes, I’m OK with it. We all depend on infrastructure in the floodplain, and we all share responsibility for fixing past decisions that have overdeveloped it. The least we can do is pay a little bit to manage our mistake a little better.
M Mofo from the Hood November 8, 2012
“…the County’s new flood control zone district created last April.” Why now for this new district? This flat tax at 1/5th the allowable rate for all property owners in Pierce County is a solution for what?… Lack of social solidarity? Why shouldn’t exemptions exist based on the location of the property?