Property Tax Levy Ordinance
The Paducah Board of Commissioners approved an ordinance setting the real estate and personal property taxes for fiscal year 2020. A property tax levy public hearing was held at the September 9 meeting. This ordinance set the City’s real estate tax levy at 26.7 cents per $100 assessed value, a 2.3 percent change as compared to the fiscal year 2019 rate of 26.1 cents. The City’s Compensating Rate, the rate that would keep the revenue at the same amount as this fiscal year, is 25.7 cents per $100 assessed value. Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) permits a city to adjust the rate upward by not more than 4 percent of the compensating rate. With the 26.7 cents, the City is taking the 4 percent allowed by KRS.
The rate of 26.7 cents is much less than what the rate was more than twenty years ago in fiscal year 1995. At that time the real estate rate was 43.8 cents per $100 assessed value. The revenue generated by the property tax is the City’s second highest revenue source behind the payroll tax.
Please note that at its September 16 meeting, the Paducah Board of Education set its tax levy at 86.4 cents per $100 of assessed value. The City collects the school tax but passes the funds along to the district.
Munis ERP Update
At the September 9 meeting of the Paducah Board of Commissioners, Assistant City Manager Michelle Smolen and Information Technology Director Stephen Chino provide a progress update for the Enterprise Resource Planning software. This project also is called the Munis project to reflect the name of the software through the vendor, Tyler Technologies. Smolen and Chino explained the availability of a new module called EnerGov which uses a GIS platform to automate, streamline, and connect permitting, inspection, and code enforcement processes. At this meeting, the Board approved a municipal order to amend the contract with Tyler to remove some modules not being used by the City and to add the EnerGov module. The net changes increase the contract by $187,600.
This multi-phase and multi-year software transition project to implement the software through Tyler Technologies kicked off in 2016. So far, the City has integrated two full phases of the project, Financials (includes budgeting and purchasing) and Revenue. The property tax phase is set to be launched next year. Later this year the City will launch Tyler 311, a non-emergency service request online portal and app.
Quick Highlights
- Several new City of Paducah employees were introduced to the Commission: Firefighter Recruits Joey Harrell, Steven Doran, Nathan King, Cary King, Dalton Lucas, Matt Dalbey, Jonathan Casner, and Quinton Eldridge; Police Officer Ricky Branin; E911 Telecommunicator Victoria Jackson; Grants Administrator Ty Wilson, and Revenue Technician I Erica Gipson.
- Boards and Commissions:
- Karen Petter appointed to Civic Beautification Board;
- Carol Young and Patrick Perry reappointed to Board of Adjustment;
- Tammara Sanderson appointed to Civil Service Commission.
- Municipal order approved for the purchase of a front loader refuse truck in the amount of $259,729 from McBride Mack.
- Municipal order approved for the purchase of three pick-up trucks in the total amount of $74,694 from Linwood Motors.
###
