A look at Johnson City's additional budget asks, local property tax rates

In just over two weeks, Johnson City commissioners will decide how and if to fund a set of additions to the city's base budget that could raise local tax rates for residents. City Manager Cathy Ball spoke to commissioners on May 14 about the city's draft Fiscal Year 2027 budget and delivered her staff's recommendations for additions to the base budget. Johnson City's additional FY 27 budget requests On top of its $122.1 million base budget, Johnson City staff have worked an additional $8.8 million into the budget that will be presented to commissioners on June 4. The additional asks include the following expenses, according to Ball's budget presentation slide deck: Debt service for a full aquatics facility buildout — $2.815 million Four-member concrete crew and equipment — $1 million Contribution to city's stabilization or "rainy day" fund — $1 million Post office demolition — $800,000 Various vehicles and equipment (mowers, scissor lift and trailer, trucks, salt equipment, etc.) — $693,000 Supplemental funding for paving — $500,000 City Hall cooling tower — $450,000 Three-member downtown maintenance crew and equipment — $430,000 Permitting software and customer service training — $375,000 James Ellis Sports Complex restrooms — $250,000 Lower Tannery Knobs infrastructural additions — $175,000 Market pay adjustments for CDL-licensed employees — $146,000 Citywide gateway signage — $144,000 City Hall directional signage — $48,500 Downtown wayfinding — $26,000 Johnson City commissioners will begin official budget deliberation during the first reading and public hearing of the FY 27 budget on June 4. The city's budget director said on May 14 that the final proposed budget, including the additional asks listed above, will publish as an advertisement in the Johnson City Press on May 28. While the budget moves through its three readings, city commissioners will discuss how best to fund these additions and which items stay or go. However, without considering outside funding sources, a 28-cent local tax increase would be required to fund all of the city's proposed additions. How to calculate your property taxes Calculating the total property taxes you owe is a multistep process and requires a few calculations: Start by finding what your property is "worth" in terms of state assessment. Multiply the current appraised value of your property by Tennessee's statutory assessment ratio for the property's classification (residential, farm, business, public utility or commercial and industrial). Then, factor in your local property tax rates. Multiply your product from (1) by the sum of the local tax rates (in pennies) that apply to you. Last, find what you owe per $100 of assessed value. Divide your product from (2) by $100 to get the final total of annual property taxes owed. Assessment ratios for the state's different property classifications are as follows: residential, 25% of appraised value; farm, 25%; commercial and industrial, 40%; public utility, 55%; business personal, 30%. Example: A residential property located in Washington County and Johnson City, with an appraised value of $300,000. Multiply the $300,000 appraised value by Tennessee's statutory assessment ratio for residential property, 25% ($300,000 * 0.25 = $75,000) Multiply the $75,000 assessment value by the sum of the local tax rates (in pennies) that apply, which would be 1.71 and 1.3785 for Washington County and Johnson City, respectively, for a total 3.0885 property tax rate ($75,000 * 3.0885 = $231,637.5) Divide the product from (2), 231,637.5 by $100 to get the final total of annual property taxes owed to both the county and city. (231,637.5 / $100 = $2,316.375) Total property taxes owed: $2,316.38 How does Johnson City's property tax rates compare to peers? Johnson City's property tax rates vary by location. For example, residents living in parts of Johnson City that are located in Carter County pay $2.3965 per $100 of assessed property value, rather than the $1.375 rate set for Johnson City-Washington County residents. See the table below for surrounding city and county property tax rates.