Scott County's tax burden continues to rank as one of the lowest in the state and the nation
The website SmartAsset found that Scott Countians have a tax burden that ranks as the seventh-lowest in Tennessee and among the bottom 5% nationally.
HUNTSVILLE | Scott Countians continue to enjoy one of Tennessee’s lowest tax burdens, according to a survey by the website SmartAsset.
According to SmartAsset, a website published by Financial Insight Technology and based in New York, Scott County has the fifth-lowest tax burden in Tennessee — behind Hancock County, Johnson County, Grundy County and Fentress County, in that order.
Scott County’s neighbors also enjoy a low tax burden. Campbell County has the state’s seventh-lowest tax burden, and Pickett County has the state’s eighth-lowest tax burden. Also ranking in the Top 10 is nearby Union County, at No. 10.
Morgan County’s tax burden ranks as Tennessee’s 22nd-lowest, while Anderson County has one of the state’s highest tax burdens, ranking 81st out of 95 counties.
According to the survey, only 104 counties out of 3,143 counties nationwide have a lower tax burden than Scott County.
The findings are similar to last year, when Scott County ranked as the fifth-lowest tax burden in Tennessee and the 95th-lowest nationally when SmartAsset compiled the numbers.
Although Scott County’s national standing has slipped slightly, the local tax burden still ranks among the bottom 5% nationally.
What are the rankings based on? According to SmartAsset, a Scott County resident can expect to pay $15,742 in income tax, $2,100.10 in sales tax, $616 in property tax and $181.85 in fuel tax over the course of one year.
The survey is somewhat flawed because it uses the national median household income to determine tax burdens. For example, it assumes that residents of every county in Tennessee — which is one of just eight states nationally without a state income tax — will pay $15,742 in federal income tax. In fact, based on Scott County’s median household income, the average Scott County resident can expect to pay around $690 in federal income tax — far less than in Wilson County, where the average person can expect to pay just over $9,500 in federal income taxes. Nevertheless, the rankings balance out somewhat once one considers that the average Scott County resident pays a higher percentage of their income on things like sales taxes and gasoline taxes than residents in wealthier communities where the median income is greater. The national median household income is estimated to be about $83,000. The Scott County median household income is estimated to be about $37,000.
For property taxes, SmartAsset estimated that Scott Countians pay less than all but six other Tennessee counties. The county’s property tax burden ranks 243rd nationally out of 3,143 counties.
That ranking was determined by comparing the median property taxes paid in each county. Scott County’s actual property tax rate ranks middle of the pack in Tennessee, but property values are lower here than in some other counties, resulting in less property taxes paid.
According to SmartAsset, Fentress County has the lowest property tax burden in the state, at $519, and Pickett County has the sixth-lowest, at $606. Campbell County ranks just behind Scott County, at $651.
As a whole, Tennessee’s tax burden ranks better than almost any state in the country. Other states that perform well in terms of a low tax burden include Texas, Nevada, Wyoming, North Dakota and South Dakota. Florida isn’t far behind.
Just to the north, SmartAsset determined that McCreary County’s tax burden ranks as the sixth-lowest in Kentucky, but only the 711th-lowest nationally. That’s due largely, of course, to Kentucky’s state income tax.
The website determined that McCreary County has the ninth-lowest property tax burden in Kentucky, with the average homeowner paying $565 annually in property taxes.