Tuesday's levies: personal property tax figures

When voters approved $107.8 million in school levies Tuesday night, they approved more than $9.4 million in personal property taxes — the controversial tax collected on business equipment, supplies and furnishings.

Idaho Education News analyzed the results in 36 districts statewide, where voters renewed, expanded or voted for new levies for schools. The $107.8 million was then calculated against a recent State Tax Commission analysis, which calculated how much every taxing district in Idaho collects from the personal property tax.

The results vary widely. Some school districts do not rely very much on the personal property tax. Others do — particularly rural districts that collect a large proportion of their property taxes from industrial or manufacturing plants and their equipment.

The bottom line is more or less in line with the Tax Commission report, which concluded that school districts collect 9.2 percent of their property taxes from personal property.

Tuesday’s school levy results come as legislators consider whether to repeal the personal property tax, in whole or in part. The Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry, a lobbying group pushing for a full repeal of the tax, is expected to unveil a new bill Friday.

By the numbers

The table below estimates the personal property taxes that will be collected in the 36 school districts that approved new levies Tuesday. Idaho Education News used State Tax Commission’s calculations, which determined the percentage of property taxes each school district collects from personal property.

District                                      Total levy                     PPT percent    PPT
Coeur d’Alene                            $27,000,000                        4.69                $1,266,300
Lake Pend Oreille                $15,700,000           7.61               $1,194,770
Twin Falls                          $9,000,000             10.04              $903,600
Pocatello/Chubbuck                  $8,500,000             10.16                   $863,600
Idaho Falls                             $6,800,000                 10.64             $723,520
Post Falls                                $8,500,000                 7.88                  $669,800
Boundary County                   $2,800,000              17.14             $479,920
Nampa                                  $4,300,000                 10.53             $452,790
Soda Springs                         $798,000                     48.13             $384,077
Blackfoot                                 $1,975,000            15.84             $312,840
American Falls                     $660,000                  40.65                $268,290
Jerome                                    $1,300,000             17.45            $226,850
Bonneville                               $3,000,000              7.05                  $211,500
Payette                                  $1,390,000                 11.23             $156,097
Gooding                               $510,000                     27.54            $140,454
Aberdeen                                 $675,000                     19.74                $133,245
Horseshoe Bend             $600,000                     18.20                $109,200
Snake River                            $900,000                  11.37                 $102,330
Potlatch                                   $1,500,000                6.53                  $97,950
Bear Lake                          $800,000                     11.60             $92,800
Challis                                  $400,000                             20.21              $80,840
North Gem                              $200,000                     35.10                 $70,200
Kootenai                             $2,400,000                2.86                $68,640
Teton                                    $3,100,000            1.97                $61,070
Genesee                              $935,000                     6.31                $58,998
Grace                                  $300,000                     19.08              $57,240
Ririe                                        $385,000                10.27              $39,540
Clark County                             $150,000                26.35              $39,525
Cascade                                $1,000,000              3.55                $35,500
Kendrick                             $825,000                  4.07                $33,578
New Meadows                       $190,000                    13.60              $25,840
Butte                                      $225,000                    11.38              $25,605
West Side                             $90,000                     20.55              $18,495
Camas County                   $250,000                    6.31                $15,775
Highland                             $499,000                  3.00                $14,970
Mackay                                  $150,000                     2.93                $4,395