White County has been issued a tentative property assessment equalization factor of 1.0000, according to David Harris, director of the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR). The equalization factor, also known as the “multiplier,” is used to ensure uniform property assessments among counties, as required by law. This process is essential because some of Illinois’ 6,600 local taxing districts overlap multiple counties.
In Illinois, state law mandates that properties be assessed at one-third of their market value. However, farm properties are assessed differently; farm homesites and dwellings follow regular assessing procedures while farmland and buildings are assessed based on productivity standards.
The equalization factor is determined annually for each county by comparing sales prices from the past three years with assessed values assigned by county assessors. When the average level of assessment matches one-third of market value, the factor is set at 1.0000. If it exceeds or falls short of this threshold, adjustments are made accordingly.
Currently, assessments in White County stand at 33.07% of market value based on property sales data from 2021 through 2023. The equalization factor being considered will apply to taxes in 2024 payable in 2025. Last year’s factor was also set at 1.0000.
This tentative multiplier could change if significant actions affecting county assessments are taken by the County Board of Review or if new data presented alters IDOR’s estimates regarding assessment levels in the county. A public hearing will occur between 20 and 30 days after publication in a local newspaper.
Changes in the equalization factor do not directly alter total property tax bills; these are determined by local taxing bodies’ annual funding requests for services provided to citizens. Even if assessments rise, taxes may remain stable unless local district requests increase beyond previous amounts.
The assessed value dictates an individual’s share of tax responsibility but remains unaffected by changes in the multiplier.
