Cleveland, Tennessee, Police Chief Wes SnyderCLEVELAND, Tenn. – An 18.51 cent property tax increase for Cleveland is on the table in the city’s proposed 2014 budget, which provides for more police officers and a cost-of-living raise for city employees.
On Monday, the City Council will vote on final passage of the budget during its 3 p.m. meeting at the Cleveland Municipal Building.
The tax increase will be in addition to an estimated 6 cent increase from a state-mandated property reappraisal. That increase is intended to prevent loss of revenue because of the reappraisal.
If the budget is passed, the certified city property tax rate is estimated to be $1.7351 per $100 of assessed value. Cleveland has not had a property tax increase since 2005.
The tax hike will be needed “for operations to maintain the current level of services being provided to our citizens and to pay the debt service for capital projects,” City Manager Janice Casteel said in a notice to the Cleveland City Council.