The Kenai Peninsula Borough wants to limit how much property assessments increase each year in response to recent, significant year-over-year surges. Borough assembly members last week voted to formally request state lawmakers give the borough the power to set the rate.
The borough needs the help of the Alaska Legislature because the powers of Alaska boroughs are set in state law. The assembly resolution requests a statutory change expanding the borough’s authority.
The proposal comes from Borough Mayor Peter Micciche, who’s also the former president of the Alaska Senate. He says recent sharp rises in assessment values have caused financial hardship for borough property owners.
“What goes up does come down … what we're trying to do is eliminate those high peaks that really impact working families and seniors,” he said.
When the assessed value of a property goes up, that property owner usually pays more in property taxes to the Kenai Peninsula Borough. In recent years, the borough has lowered its property tax rate to try and offset the impacts of higher assessments. But Micciche says adjusting that rate doesn’t fully soften the blow.
The resolution passed by assembly members does not actually set a cap. That change would need to come from the Alaska Legislature. If lawmakers updated state law, local assembly members would need to introduce and pass a corresponding ordinance.
Assembly members passed the resolution 7-1. Southern peninsula representative Willy Dunne cast the vote in opposition. He pointed to public comments made by a former assembly vice president that raised several questions and concerns about the resolution, including whether a cap would disproportionately impact new homeowners.
“I'm hesitant to move forward too quickly without looking at potential unintended consequences from something like this, in any event, so I'm not quite ready to support this as it’s written,” he said.
The assembly’s resolution comes as the borough works to improve the relationship between residents and its assessing department. In October, assembly members overhauled the borough’s tax code with the goal of making it easier for borough taxpayers to navigate.
