East Central Reporter

Cumberland County has received a final property assessment equalization factor of 1.0000, as announced by David Harris, director of the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR). "The property assessment equalization factor, often called the 'multiplier,' is the method used to achieve uniform property assessments among counties, as required by law," said Harris.

The necessity for equalization arises from the structure of local taxing districts, with many overlapping two or more counties. Without such a system, there would be significant inequities among taxpayers with similar properties.

In Illinois, non-farm properties should be assessed at one-third of their market value under a law enacted in 1975. Different procedures apply to farm property, with homesites and dwellings following standard assessing and equalization procedures, while farmland is assessed at one-third of its agricultural economic value, exempt from the state equalization factor.

As of the recent assessment, Cumberland County properties are evaluated at 32.98% of market value based on property sales from 2021 to 2023. The equalization factor announced is relevant for taxes in 2024, payable the following year. Last year's factor was the same, 1.0000.

Before finalizing the assessment equalization factor, a public hearing was held. The tentative factor, also set at 1.0000, had been issued earlier on February 6, 2025. The factor is reassessed each year by IDOR, based on comparing property sales prices to county assessments over the previous three years.

An equalization factor of one is achieved when the three-year average level of assessment matches one-third of the market value. If assessments exceed this, the factor decreases; if below, it increases.

It's important to note that changes in the equalization factor do not directly alter total property tax bills. These are determined by local taxing bodies' yearly financial requests. If the requested amount does not surpass the previous year's, taxes will not rise even if assessments do.

Ultimately, the assessed value of a property dictates the owner's share of tax responsibility. The multiplier does not alter this individual tax burden.