Audit: Utah property-tax increases tied to residential value growth, 2018 rate freeze and new-growth rules

The Revenue and Taxation Interim Committee on Oct. 1 heard a legislative performance audit that traced why residential property taxes have risen faster than other categories and identified procedural gaps the Legislature could address.

Auditors told the committee that, although most taxing entities collect within roughly 10% of their budgets year to year, several statewide and local factors have driven higher residential bills. "We presented this, to this committee last year," said Leah Blevins, audit manager who oversaw the review. Blevins and staff described a combination of rapidly rising residential market values, a 2018 basic-rate levy freeze and inconsistent treatments of "new growth" as the main drivers of shifting tax burdens.

The audit found that when primary residential values outpace commercial or centrally assessed values, the truth-in-taxation system—which is designed to hold entities' total revenue roughly flat—can shift the share of revenue to homeowners even when total revenue targets stay the same. Auditors highlighted that in their six-county sample, residential taxable value rose in every county between 2015 and 2024; in Emery County, residential value more than doubled. "That was the situation in…