LINCOLN COUNTY, Tenn. (WHNT) — The Lincoln County Commission passed a budget for the 2023-24 fiscal year at a special called meeting on Tuesday, and it includes a 37% property tax increase.

The commission passed the budget for the 2023-2024 fiscal year by a 15-7 margin, which includes the $0.78 tax increase after multiple other proposals failed at the special called meeting.

The commission debated the issue for about an hour, with different commissioners also proposing a tax rate of $2.90 and $2.70, neither of which were approved. Finally, the $2.88 property tax rate was passed.

Currently, residents pay $2.10 per $100 of assessed value, and the assessed value is 25% of the appraised value. This means you would multiply .021 by the assessed value of the property to get the amount residents have to pay in property tax now.

The proposed tax increase will make the cost $2.88 per $100 of assessed value.

That means if a property’s appraised value is $100,000, its assessed value is $25,000. A resident would pay $525 in property taxes under the previous rate. However, with the new tax being passed, their new property tax rate would be $720.

In June, the county commission rejected a proposal that would have increased the rate to $3.20.

Several residents spoke out against the property tax increase in the proposal at the commissions meeting in June. Residents returned to do the same thing in July and at the special meeting on Tuesday.