Property tax refunds are going back to local entities

School districts, libraries and other public offices are sharing $ 10.2 million in refunds, left over after Franklin County’s triennial real- estate reappraisals last year.

School districts are receiving $ 6.7 million of that total. Columbus City Schools is the biggest beneficiary, with nearly $ 2.4 million, according to county Auditor Clarence Mingo’s office.

Area agencies will share $ 2 million, including the Franklin County Board of Developmental Disabilities ( about $ 744,000) and Children Services ( about $ 522,000).

City, township and other local offices will share the remainder, including the city of Columbus ( about $ 340,000), Washington Township ( about $ 68,000) and the Columbus Metropolitan Library ( nearly $ 208,000).

The funds were directed to the auditor’s office via a state law that allows a portion of property taxes paid in the county to be set aside to cover the costs of reappraisals.

The full process occurs over six years — there’s a market study conducted over an initial three- year period, at a cost of $ 3 million to $ 5 million, followed by a fullblown reappraisal of property values during the following three years, at a cost of $ 7 million to $ 10 million, Mingo said.

The auditor’s office has an annual budget of $ 19 million to $ 24 million.

There’s no mandate that excess funds be returned, Mingo said, but his office and his predecessor’s have opted to do so.

“Here in a metropolitan county like this, where the real estate functionality is expensive and vast, we could certainly find legitimate causes or reasons to spend that money, or we could simply keep it, but we’ve taken a good deal of delight in giving it back to school districts,” Mingo said. “Especially at this time, when budgets are still recovering from recession and funds are still constricted.”

The auditor’s office returned $ 10.5 million following its 2014 reappraisal process and $ 7 million in 2012, said David O’Neil, the auditor’s spokesman.

The funds are disbursed in proportion to the property tax bills in each area.