Kenai council to hear public testimony Sept. 2 on $75,000 home tax exemption ballot question

Kenai homeowners could shield the first $75,000 of their home's assessed value from city property taxes, under a measure the City Council could send to voters in November. At the city's current rate, that would save a qualifying homeowner about $326 a year.

The council takes public testimony Wednesday, Sept. 2, at 6 pm, its last scheduled hearing before deciding whether to put the question on the Nov. 3 ballot. Council members Jason Knackstedt and Jim Kisena are the sponsors. If voters approve it, the exemption would start in 2027.

The idea came from a resident who told the council his home's assessed value had climbed 18.5 percent in five years. The mayor asked the city manager to draft an exemption, and the council took it up in a work session. Resident James Basin said the goal was to give owners relief without hurting "the taxes that we need to do the basic services."

Exempting that value shrinks the pool of property the city can tax, which the council's own materials note would affect future budgets. Kenai's tax rate brings in roughly $50 million a year against more than $60 million in spending.

The city exemption would piggyback on the Kenai Peninsula Borough's version, so only residents who apply for and receive the borough exemption would get it. That requires living in the home at least 185 days a year. Qualifying seniors already get a far larger borough exemption, up to $300,000.