Butler County property owners now have a new way to see exactly how their tax dollars are being distributed, thanks to an update to the county’s online property search system. The feature, announced by Butler County Auditor Nancy Nix, adds a detailed “Current Tax Distribution” tab to the county’s property search website at Butler County Auditor Property Search. The tool breaks down each individual levy within a taxing district, showing when it was passed, its gross and effective tax rates, and the total taxes tied to each levy. The feature is available for every property in Butler County. Nix called the update “a tremendous leap in public transparency,” noting that the information had previously been available but scattered across multiple reports that were difficult for residents to navigate. “While this information has been available, it was spread across multiple reports and was not easy to find. Now, it can be accessed with one click of a button,” Nix said in a statement. To use the feature, users can search their property through the auditor’s website, then select the “Current Tax Distribution” tab. From there, they can view a breakdown of levies tied to their property and taxing district. According to the auditor’s office, the tool may be especially helpful for residents trying to understand how many levies exist within a city, village, township, or school district, as well as how long those levies have been in place and what types of services they fund, including police, fire, roads, and schools. Officials caution that the totals shown in the new breakdown are calculated before any tax rollbacks or exemptions are applied, including owner-occupancy credits, non-business credits, or the Homestead exemption. As a result, the displayed totals may be higher than the final amount taxpayers see on their bill.
While the new tab provides expanded detail, residents will still find their traditional tax summary information and billing totals in other sections of the site. One piece of levy data—expiration dates—is not included in the new feature. That information remains available in the county’s DTE 27 Abstract of Tax Rates report, located under the “Reports & Publications” section of the auditor’s website. Nix said the goal of the update is to improve transparency and accessibility for taxpayers. “From the beginning, I have promised residents and taxpayers high-quality customer service along with honesty, transparency, and outreach,” she said. “This effort reflects those principles.”
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