SB 295 makes several changes to Utah’s property tax laws. First, it creates a five-year “truth-in-taxation exemption period” for a taxing entity that lowers its budget below the prior year’s property tax budgeted revenue: during that period, the entity may raise its budget back up to the base-year budgeted revenue without going through the usual truth-in-taxation notice and public hearing process, so long as it stays at or below that base-year amount. The bill also adds definitions tied to this new exemption, including “base year,” “base year budgeted revenue,” and “truth-in-taxation exemption period,” and it preserves existing notice and hearing rules for increases above the certified tax rate outside that exemption.
The bill also revises the statewide multicounty assessing and collecting levy. It repeals the prior requirement that 18% of that levy be deposited into the Property Tax Valuation Fund, and instead directs all revenue from the levy to the Multicounty Appraisal Trust. Related conforming changes remove the prior split allocation language and update the statutory treatment of the levy. In addition, the bill makes technical and cleanup changes and includes retrospective operation for the truth-in-taxation amendments beginning January 1, 2025, with the levy changes taking effect January 1, 2026.
In practical terms, the bill affects taxing entities such as counties, cities, school-related taxing entities, special districts, and other local governments subject to Utah’s truth-in-taxation requirements. It changes when a taxing entity must provide public notice and hold hearings before increasing property tax revenue, but only in the specific circumstance where the entity has previously reduced its budget below the prior year’s property tax budgeted revenue. It also changes the flow of property tax revenue collected under the multicounty assessing and collecting levy, shifting funds away from the Property Tax Valuation Fund and into the Multicounty Appraisal Trust.
The overall sentiment reflected in the voting history appears strongly favorable and noncontroversial. The bill passed both chambers with unanimous votes in committee and on the floor, suggesting broad bipartisan support and little visible opposition. No committee transcript was provided, so there is no recorded debate to indicate substantive disagreement.
The main point of potential contention, based on the bill’s substance, is the reduction in truth-in-taxation notice and hearing requirements for certain taxing entities during the five-year exemption period. Supporters may view this as administrative flexibility for entities that have already reduced budgets, while critics could see it as limiting taxpayer notice and public participation before taxes are restored to prior levels. The revenue reallocation from the Property Tax Valuation Fund to the Multicounty Appraisal Trust is another possible policy issue, though the recorded votes do not show opposition.
SB 295 amends Utah Code sections 59-2-919, 59-2-1602, and 63I-1-259. It creates a new five-year exception to truth-in-taxation procedures for certain taxing entities that previously budgeted below last year’s property tax revenue, allowing them to return to the base-year budget without the usual notice and hearing requirements. It also redirects all multicounty assessing and collecting levy revenue to the Multicounty Appraisal Trust and removes the prior statutory set-aside for the Property Tax Valuation Fund, with the levy changes taking effect in 2026 and the truth-in-taxation changes applied retroactively to January 1, 2025.
The bill appears to have enjoyed strong, unanimous support throughout the legislative process. It received favorable and substitute recommendations in both the Senate and House committees and passed both chambers without any recorded dissenting votes. The absence of recorded opposition or committee transcript debate suggests the measure was viewed as a technical or administrative property tax adjustment rather than a highly controversial policy change.
The most notable policy tension is the bill’s new five-year exemption from truth-in-taxation notice and hearing requirements for taxing entities that cut their budgets below the prior year’s property tax budgeted revenue. That change could be seen as reducing transparency and public input, even though it is limited to a defined circumstance and capped at the base-year budget. A second possible area of concern is the redirection of multicounty levy revenue from the Property Tax Valuation Fund to the Multicounty Appraisal Trust, which changes how property tax administration funds are allocated among state-related property tax functions.