Prairie State Wire

White County has been issued a final property assessment equalization factor of 1.0000, according to David Harris, director of the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR).

The property assessment equalization factor, often referred to as the "multiplier," is used to achieve uniform property assessments among counties, as required by law. This equalization is particularly important because some of the state's 6,600 local taxing districts overlap into two or more counties, such as school districts and fire protection districts. Without equalization among counties, substantial inequities among taxpayers with comparable properties would result.

Under a law passed in 1975, property in Illinois should be assessed at one-third (1/3) of its market value. Farm property is assessed differently; farm homesites and dwellings are subject to regular assessing and equalization procedures, while farmland is assessed at one-third of its agricultural economic value and not subject to the state equalization factor.

Assessments in White County are at 33.33% of market value based on sales of properties in 2020, 2021, and 2022. The current equalization factor applies to 2023 taxes payable in 2024. Last year's equalization factor for the county was also 1.0000.

The final assessment equalization factor was issued after a public hearing on the tentative factor. The tentative factor issued on June 14, 2024 was also set at 1.0000.

The annual determination of the equalization factor for each county involves comparing the price of individual properties sold over the past three years to their assessed values placed by the county supervisor of assessments or county assessor. If the three-year average level of assessment is one-third of market value, the equalization factor will be one (1). If it is greater than one-third of market value, the factor will be less than one (1). Conversely, if it is less than one-third of market value, the factor will be greater than one (1).

A change in the equalization factor does not mean total property tax bills will increase or decrease. Tax bills are determined by local taxing bodies when they request money each year to provide services to local citizens. If local taxing districts do not request more money than they received in previous years, total property taxes will not increase even if assessments rise.

The assessed value of an individual property determines what portion of the tax burden a specific taxpayer will assume; this portion is not changed by the multiplier.