HURLEY -- Taxpayers in Iron County will see the mill rate drop for the county portion of their 2009 property taxes, but that doesn't necessarily mean they will pay less than last year.

Iron County proposes to collect $3,810,033 in property taxes for 2009.

That is a 1.187 percent increase over the 2008 tax levy of $3,765,316.

The county's equalized value increased $43,718,600 over last year, from $969,821,900 to $1,013,535,500, according to county clerk Mike Saari. He attributed the increase to property sales throughout the county.

Because of the increase in valuation, the mill rate will decrease in 2009.

The proposed mill rate is $3.76 per $1,000 of valuation, down from $3.88 in 2008.

A taxpayer with property assessed at $50,000 will pay $188 for the county's portion of property taxes for 2009. That same taxpayer paid $194 in 2008.

The Iron County Board will hold a budget hearing on Nov. 11 at 7 p.m., followed by the regular monthly meeting.

Valuations Change

The levy is the total collected from all taxpayers in the county. The mill rate is the levied amount divided by the assessed value of the city or town within the county.

Five townships in the county increased in value over the past year.

Sherman experienced a 10.7 percent increase, Oma, 7.3 percent; Kimball, 9 percent; Pence, 3.3 percent; and Carey, 2.3 percent.