County manager Dustin Grabau estimates the county will collect an additional $1 million in property tax revenue due to new growth, and revenue is a few million dollars higher than expected across the board.
He said that means tax rates likely won’t need to go up in 2025.
“Whenever a new property is built, the same tax rate is applied to those new properties, and that shows up as additional revenue to the county,” he said.
Grabau said with major capital projects coming up, like a new county administration building, that growth is good news for taxpayers’ wallets.
He said tax dollars from the Military Installation Development Authority also help county leaders avoid tax hikes.
MIDA is a state agency made up of appointed officials. It was originally created with the mission of serving members of the military, and it generates revenue by partnering with local governments on economic development projects.
In Wasatch County, much of MIDA’s development is part of Deer Valley’s resort expansion project and the SkyRidge golf and equestrian facilities.
MIDA gets the bulk of property taxes for up to 40 years in those areas, but as the resort facilities begin welcoming guests, the county expects to see new profits.
“We expect that’s going to be one of the revenue streams that’s going to make sure that we can actually keep up with all of the increased costs without having to go back to taxpayers,” Grabau said.
This summer, MIDA officials estimated Wasatch County could receive upwards of $2 million in tax revenue by 2029.
Grabau said the agreement with MIDA helps shift the cost of capital projects onto sales and hotel taxes, rather than making it the default to raise property taxes.
“I think that it’s already reaping dividends for our taxpayers to know, hey, we can do these essential services, and it’s going to be largely visitors and other people that are going to help us pay for those things,” he said.
He said it will still be another three to five years before the county’s MIDA tax revenue reaches a “really significant level.”
In the meantime, Grabau encourages county residents to take part in budget discussions and share their priorities with council members.
The next county council meeting is Wednesday, Sept. 18. Details on how to take part are on the county website.
