The Lackawanna County commissioners formally introduced a 2026 budget Wednesday with new, lower tax rates based on new, higher property values developed during reassessment.
Setting the new rate means property owners can finally calculate if their taxes will go up, down or stay about the same next year because of reassessment.
The almost $180.7 million budget, assuming the commissioners adopt it at their Dec. 3 meeting, will set the 2026 tax rate at 5.79 mills compared to 89.98 mills under the old values.
How to calculate taxes
To calculate taxes, multiply your property’s current assessed value (it’s on your tax bill) by the current millage rate, then divide the result by 1,000. Then, do the same thing with the new value and millage rate.
The millage rate had to drop because the total assessed value of all properties went way up. And counties can’t use new values from a reassessment to raise more in revenue than current values.
The new tax rates and values will go into effect Jan. 1.
Tax rate down, values up
County chief financial officer David Bulzoni outlined the differences.
Under current values, the value of the county’s 102,503 properties added up to almost $1.6 billion ($1,591,685,381, to be precise).
Under the new values, all the properties added up to more than $24.8 billion ($24,837,033,715), or about 15.6 times higher.
The new millage rate is about the same proportion lower.
The current millage rate and values produced an estimated $129,929,048 in taxes. The new rate and values will produce an estimated $129,914,725, or $14,323 less, Bulzoni said.
