South Central Reporter

Bond County in Illinois has received a final property assessment equalization factor of 0.9455. David Harris, director of the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR), announced this development.

The property assessment equalization factor, often referred to as the "multiplier," ensures uniform property assessments among counties, following a legal requirement. This uniformity is crucial because of the overlapping of some of the state's 6,600 local taxing districts across multiple counties, such as school districts and fire protection districts. Without equalization, taxpayers with similar properties could face significant inequities.

In Illinois, property is required by law to be assessed at one-third of its market value. However, farm property undergoes a different assessment process: farm homesites and dwellings are subject to standard assessing and equalization, but farmland is assessed at one-third of its agricultural economic value and exempt from the state equalization factor.

For Bond County, assessments are reported to be at 35.25% of market value based on property sales from 2021 to 2023. The assigned equalization factor pertains to taxes for 2024, which are payable in 2025. The prior year's equalization factor was 0.9238.

The final factor was established after a public hearing on the tentative factor. Initially, the tentative factor set on March 5, 2025, was also 0.9455.

The annual determination of the equalization factor for each county involves comparing the sale prices of individual properties over the preceding three years to the assessed value given by the county supervisor of assessments or county assessor. If the three-year average level of assessment equates to one-third of market value, the factor is one. If the assessment average exceeds one-third of market value, the factor is reduced to below one, and if it's less, the factor surpasses one.

The change in equalization factor doesn't necessarily imply a change in total property tax bills. Such bills are set by local taxing entities when they annually request funds to provide services. If the requested amount doesn't surpass the previous year's, property taxes won't rise even if property assessments do.

The assessed value of each property dictates the tax burden a specific taxpayer bears. However, the individual's share of tax responsibility remains unaffected by the multiplier.