Agenda 04-05-22; 6-a - Longtime Homeowner Assistance (LHA) Program Evaluation

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2 household not having a tax increase (30 denials), followed by households not owning their home for ten or more years (6 denials), and the household being over income (3 denials). Of the 91 approved applicants, 45% were white, 44% were black, 4% were multi-racial, and 1% Asian. 60% of the approved applications were age 65 or over. Staff from the three participating departments offer the following proposed program design changes should the Board wish to continue the LHA program in 2022 with the remaining $233,636 allocated for this purpose: 1) Change program design to cover more of the amount owed by the taxpayer. Using data from the 2021 LHA program, staff proposes three options: a. Institute a baseline minimum award amount: The award amount would be equal to the difference between the County Tax portion of the 2020 tax bill and the 2022 tax bill, with a minimum award amount of$300 (note that the average award amount for 2021 was roughly $190). Estimated amount of assistance for 2022: $37,290 b. Base award on full bill amount: The amount will be equal to the difference between the full bill amount of the 2020 tax bill and the 2022 tax bill with no minimum: $46,861 i. For 2021, the range of assistance $1.94 - $2,974.00, average $348 ii. Minimal award amounts: 56 under $300, 33 under $100, and 21 under $50 iii. If the minimum award amount was set at $300, the estimate would be $55,731 c. Standard award amount: The award amount would be a standard award amount with a cap, based on approximately one-half of the average County tax portion for 2021 recipients, which would result in an award amount of$830: Estimated amount of assistance for 2022: $94,684 i. Cap the award amount so it is no more than that actual bill amount. ii. This follows a similar method used by another county. 2) Adjust program operation dates to August 1 through December 1, 2022. This would start the program two months earlier, immediately following when homeowners receive property tax notices in July. It would also move the deadline back by two weeks which will allow staff additional needed time for application processing, which was a challenge in 2021. 3) Include an informational insert and LHA application with the tax assistance application packet, with the goal of both increasing awareness about LHA and making the process of applying for all assistance programs simpler for taxpayers. 4) Formalize policy for heirs' properties where there are more than one person/households listed on the deed. Staff recommend considering the 10 year occupancy requirement based on the amount of time the property has remained within the family (rather than current owners who may be heirs of a previous owner). Staff also recommends providing assistance based on the income of the household members who reside in the home rather than the income of all heirs. 5) Formalize policy for Family Trust owned properties. Staff recommends that the applicant should be a trustee for the trust. Staff also recommends providing assistance based on the income of the household members who reside in the home rather than the income of all trustees.