Sacramento, CA…California State Board of Equalization (BOE) Vice Chair George Runner announces assessed property values in Calaveras, Mariposa, and Tuolumne counties grew 5.0 percent ($14.4 billion to $15.2 billion) in 2015-16 from 2014-15. County-assessed property values gained 4.9 percent, while state-assessed values jumped 5.8 percent year-over-year. County assessors are responsible for assessing the value of each home, as well as other residential and commercial property as of January 1 of each year. That value is used to set the property tax that is due by December of that year, and April of the following year. The BOE is responsible for assessing properties such as privately owned public utilities and railroads. Annual tax bills for the owners of those properties are based on these valuations.

“Property values throughout California continue to rise,” said Board of Equalization Vice Chair Runner. “In some areas of the state we saw more growth than others, but overall this is an encouraging sign for our economy.”

This is the fifth consecutive year the total value of California’s county and state-assessed properties has increased, fueled in large part by the recovery in the state’s housing market. For 2015-16, values rose to $5.209 trillion, an increase of $289.9 billion (5.9 percent) from 2014-15. Values statewide are 14.4 percent higher than they were in 2008-09, when they hit their prior peak.

Valuations in the state’s 43 inland counties rose 5.8 percent. The assessed valuation in California’s 15 coastal counties, which accounts for more than 60 percent of total assessed valuation, gained 6.0 percent.

Fifty-six counties posted year-to-year increases in assessed value, most of those increases above two percent. Two counties experienced a year-to-year decline in value. Thirty-three counties grew in excess of five percent.

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Elected in November 2010, and re-elected in 2014, Vice Chair George Runner represents the State Board of Equalization’s First District. He is a leading advocate for California taxpayers. Runner has worked to improve California’s tax policies and practices and to create and retain more private sector jobs in our state. Prior to his election to the Board, Runner served twelve years in the State Legislature, authoring the well-known California Amber Alert and California’s Blue Alert. As a thoughtful conservative, his legislative priorities included improving the economy, business growth, education excellence, and public safety for all Californians. As a member of the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee, Runner consistently led the fight against tax increases and supported tax relief for families and businesses.

The five-member California State Board of Equalization (BOE) is a publicly elected tax board. The BOE collects $60 billion annually in taxes and fees, supporting state and local government services. It hears business tax appeals, acts as the appellate body for franchise and personal income tax appeals, and serves a significant role in the assessment and administration of property taxes. For more information on other taxes and fees in California, visit the California Tax Service Center