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Smyrna council adopts certified, revenue-neutral property tax rate after reappraisal
Summary
After a reappraisal that raised many home values, Smyrna adopted the state-required certified, revenue-neutral rate of 0.4258 to offset appraisal increases; staff said the example homeowner’s higher appraisal translated to an estimated $0.56 increase in the town tax bill.
The Smyrna Town Council on June 25 adopted Ordinance 26-27, setting the town’s certified, revenue-neutral property tax rate at 0.4258 for fiscal year 2026–27. Staff said the adoption is intended to offset changes from a mandated reappraisal so the town’s aggregate revenue remains effectively unchanged.
Sierra, the staff presenter, told the council the reappraisal “is required by Tennessee state law” and that “virtually everyone's appraised value significantly increased.” She said the certified tax rate is intended to guarantee revenue neutrality on an aggregate basis and that “for this example homeowner, their appraised value shot up by almost 24%,” but the impact to the town portion of that homeowner’s tax bill in the example is “only 56 cents.”
Sierra walked through how residents can verify their own figures by comparing the assessed value on their notice with the certified rate and said the county tax rate must be applied separately for the county portion of the bill. After the staff presentation the council opened the public hearing for comments; there were no speakers and the council voted by voice to approve the ordinance.
Why it matters: The move avoids what the town described as a tax increase at the municipal level even as individual homeowners’ bills can rise or fall depending on how their property’s percentage change compares with the average. The council and staff emphasized that the adopted rate covers only the town portion of the bill and that county taxes are calculated separately.
Next steps: The adopted rate will be posted to the town’s public information channels and staff said they had already placed explanatory slides on social media and plan to make the materials more accessible on the website.
