2009 Property Tax Rates Set - lower for most, but...

By Stan Matthews
County Communications Program Manager

San Juan County Assessor Charles Zalmanek reports that the total assessed value of taxable property in San Juan County increased 13.1% between 2007 and 2008 to approximately $7.976 billion. That is identical to the increase during 2006 and lower than the jump in 2005 when the total taxable property value increased by 17%.

The increase in total value does not translate directly into higher taxes however because the County can only increase revenue collected from existing property by 1% per year without voter approval.

Assessor Zalmanek also noted that some of the 43 taxing entities in the County did not take their full allowable increase this year. Those include: the Port of Orcas, the San Juan and Orcas Cemetery Districts, and San Juan Island Emergency Medical Services. (Only 10.5% of the average property tax dollar is collected for the County Government’s operating fund.)

To offset the higher values, the tax levy rate was reduced by amounts ranging from 3% in Friday Harbor to 17.4% on Orcas Island. Because roughly one-third of the properties in the County are re-assessed each year, two thirds of the properties in the County actually pay less tax each year than the previous year. Residents of South San Juan Island – whose appraisals increased an average of 52% last year – will pay about $23 less in property taxes per $100,000 value. On Blakely Island property taxes will drop by $54 per $100,000 value.