HB 231 & SB 542 Require Resetting Fixed Base Mills, Mills Passed As Presented

Richland County Commissioners approved 256.78 mill levies on Monday, Sept. 8. Of those, 154.82 are specific to the Road Department, 99 mills are specific to schools, and 6 mills are designated for the state university system. Mill levies are approved annually, however 2025 is unique because county officials had to reset fixed based mills, choosing between two options that will set new base fixed mills for future years.

This came as a result of House bill 231 and Senate Bill 542 passing, both phasing in rate changes in tax years 2025 and 2026. Legislature revised tax rates for residential, commercial and agricultural property after years of large increases in residential property value. Changing the tax rate to a property’s market value also changes the taxable portion of a property’s value, and therefore the amount of property taxes paid.

Mill levies are set to raise the budgeted revenue from the available taxable value by counties, cities, etc. Lower tax rates reduce taxable value, which can then result in mill levy increases.

There are two types of property tax levies, the first being fixed mill levies, which allow a taxing jurisdiction to levy a maximum number of mills, without the ability to add more in the future. The second is dollar-based levies, which adjust the number of mills to raise a certain dollar amount.

Richland County Commissioners chose option 2 because it provides the flexibility to raise mills as needed to maintain current services and meet future needs. Money generated from mill levies is used by the county to fund departments such as law enforcement, the county planner, health department, and many more.

“We chose to do it this way since we don’t want to be boxed into a corner,” explained Richland County Commissioner Duane Mitchell. “I don’t know how counties could choose option 1 and still provide the services people want, especially counties without oil money. We use oil money to help ease taxes going up.”

If taxable value increases, mills decrease. If taxable value decreases, mills increase.

“I believe a lot of the reason (for resetting fixed based mills) is that counties don’t have enough in their budgets for the road departments. That seems to be the one that suffers across the state, and it’s most of a county’s budget,” said Richland County Commissioner Loren Young, adding Richland County has spent close to $4 million in the last year on crushing gravel alone. “Cost inflates: equipment, salaries, maintenance. Employer contribution has sky-rocketed over the years. We don’t like that the costs go up, but we can’t control it.”

HB 231 & SB 542 Require Resetting Fixed Base Mills, Mills Passed As Presented

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