2007 Property Tax Apportionment Data

October 2007 Mailbox
2007 Property Tax Apportionment Data

Wisconsin Department of Revenue Data

March 2006 Mailbox

You already know Wisconsin is a high property tax state (nearly 25% above the all-state per capita average, US Census Bureau data confirm). But did you know towns pay a disproportionate share of this exceptionally high statewide tax burden? In 2007 per capita property tax payments were 10% higher in towns than cities, state Department of Revenue (DOR) data confirm. How can this be? After all, you also already know that towns are more frugal and levy lower property taxes than cities. The short answer to this riddle is that towns are the objects of a disproportionate tax apportionment.

Property Tax Apportionment 101: Wis. Statutes require that county and school (K-12 and technical college) tax levies be apportioned to underlying towns, villages and cities based on each municipality’s share of the taxing district’s full (equalized) property value. Much as the owner of the best property in town ends up paying the biggest tax bill, municipalities with the greatest concentration of taxable value end up paying the biggest share of school and county taxes. Table One summarizes tax apportionment and other pertinent data sorted by town, village and city. Even a casual comparison of town and city figures reveals some things that make you go “hmmm.” For example, populations in towns are roughly half those in cities (1.7 million vs. 3.1 million), yet property values in towns are approaching those in cities ($177 billion vs. $217 billion). Also note that county tax levies are nearly equal in towns and cities ($723 million vs. $749 million).

Table One: 2007 Property Tax Payment Data
	Towns	Villages	Cities
2006 Population	1,687,062	825,666	3,105,016
2006 Full Value	$176,852,626,350	$75,042,966,850	$217,087,606,600
State Tax Credit	216,812,934	95,876,557	280,360,513
K-12 Tax	1,394,792,867	612,610,862	1,780,440,119
Tech College Tax	242,232,629	99,814,818	308,568,262
County Tax	722,719,442	252,452,036	748,688,141
Local Tax	328,596,428	351,818,914	1,419,484,267
Other Tax	42,421,083	100,498,471	301,230,232
Total Tax	$2,730,762,449	$1,417,195,101	$4,558,411,021

Source: DOR, “Town Village and City Taxes: Levied 2006 – Collected 2007”

Property Rich: Towns represent 30% of the total state population, yet we have 38% of taxable property value. We also pay nearly 42% of county property taxes and 37% of school taxes. High property values result in high tax apportionments, but it’s important to remember that they also translate into low tax rates. In spite of paying a bigger than average share of school and county taxes, the net (after tax credit) town tax rate is only $14.21 per $1,000 of full value, compared to $19.70 per $1,000 in cities. Property values have soared in towns and tax rates have consequently fallen rapidly, from a high water mark of $26.15 per $1,000 in 1992.

Per Capita Comparisons: Table Two offers a per capita perspective on the distribution of school and county taxes. The key to understanding tax apportionment patterns is the per capita full value figure shown at the top of the table: nearly $105,000 in towns vs. less than $70,000 in cities (i.e., 50% higher in towns). Because school and county tax apportionments are based on each municipality’s share of the tax base, this tax wealth differential pulls a relatively large portion of these levies to towns. Note, for example, that towns pay $827 per capita for K-12 schools, compared to $573 per capita in cities. This differential is partially offset by State Property Tax Credits, which are relatively high for towns when compared to cities ($129 vs. $90). The distribution formula is based on each municipality's share of statewide K-12 school levies for the three preceding years and, as we have seen, school taxes tend to be high in towns.

Table Two: 2007 Per Capita Property Tax Payment Data
	Towns	Villages	Cities
Per Cap Full Value	$104,829	$90,888	$69,915
Per Cap Tax Credit	129	116	90
Per Cap K-12 Tax	827	742	573
Per Cap Tech Col Tax	144	121	99
Per Cap County Tax	428	306	241
Per Cap Local Tax	195	426	457
Per Cap Other Tax	25	122	97
Per Cap Total Tax	$1,619	$1,716	$1,468

County Tax Apportionment: The county data are of particular interest because towns are sometimes characterized as receiving a disproportionate share of county services (e.g., “towns rely on counties for law enforcement services whereas cities and villages have their own police departments”). Whether these claims are true or not, the objective fact is that town residents pay a disproportionate share of the county tax levy when measured on a per capita basis ($428 in towns vs. $241 in cities).

The Bottom Line: Total 2007 property tax collections amounted to $1,619 per capita in towns, 10% above the $1,468 per capita collected in cities. It’s important to note that towns carry this relatively high property tax burden in spite of the fact that own-purpose (local) tax levies were only $195 per capita in towns – less than half the $457 per capita levied in cities. Does all this mean property tax apportionments are “unfair” to towns? Not necessarily; it simply means that towns (like many town taxpayers) are “property rich” magnets that attract an extra big share of the tax bill. This may be worth mentioning the next time someone says towns don’t pay a fair share of the property tax burden.